Duskrunner
by Xiahou Mel
Summary: The story of how a Blood Elf became a Death Knight, but not just any Death Knight, a special one made by Sylvanas herself. This story is rated M for adult themes and future explicit content, and will eventually include more characters. Yuri/Lemon warning.
1. Chapter 1 - Light of the Moon

Authors Note: I recently got back in to WoW, and I've always sort of had a thing for Sylvanas (as most do, I presume. ^.^) I've decided to write the story about how my favorite and longest lasting character in WoW I've had for many years became a Death Knight. This story is primarily going to be a Sylvanas/OC adventure/romance, but may include other elements or characters as I write them in.

Please note: I am ware that this chapter contains many plot holes. I've done it on purpose to lead to future plot twists. If anyone sees them... well good for you. XD If not, relax. Also, I am going to try to stick as close to WoW canon lore as possible, but if I deviate, either it's on purpose, such as certain special abilities I've written in for Sylvanas, or it's an accident, and I am not opposed to being (politely) corrected. Otherwise, I am likely to ignore you and do it again on purpose just to spite you.

Please also note: I do not actually know Thalassian, and any words contained in my chapters that I state ARE Thalassian are actually just Elven translations off of other fantasy sites. Sorry, but I simply couldn't find websites with the Thalassian translations I wanted. Please understand this. Hehe

All content and characters are owned by Blizzard and copyrights are theirs. I'm just a silly fan nerd. Hehe.

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It was twilight, faint shards of orange-red light from the fading sun still pierced the slowly deepening purple curtain of the evening sky. A raven cried somewhere in the distance, a small protest to dying day, or perhaps to the loss of a meal. A faint breeze gusted through the air, barely enough to stir the dried brush spread over the nearby hillside. The shallow wind was cold. Or... was it her that was cold? She could not tell. The waning breeze tickled her skin soothingly, comfortingly. She had never especially liked the wind before, though. She remembered that much. Where was she? Who was she? She could not recall. With a small start, she realized she was face down on the ground, laying on one side. A tiny gust in the air ruffled the strands of dark red hair dangling down in to her vision, framed by a faint blue light that seemed to glow against the dried brush under her face. Her hair. Why was she on the ground?

It took quite a lot of effort for her muscles to respond, but after a few moments of effort, she managed to roll onto her back, the faint blue glow reflected on the ground about her seemed to shift with her as she now stared up into that vast deep purple curtain above. Why was she so terribly stiff all over? She tried to flex her fingers and curl her toes, the icy air kissing her bare digits. Or was it her skin that was so icy? She still couldn't tell. With concentrated effort, she managed to lift one arm and look at her hand. The skin was extremely pale, so pale it was on the verge of being called a hue of blue. Why was she so cold? And if she was so cold, why wasn't she shivering? Indeed, it didn't seem to bother her much, but it was very noticeable.

It took the better part of a quarter of an hour before she was able to convince her body to cooperate well enough to assume a sitting position on the edge of the hill she was on. An old reflexive habit kicked in and she tried to twist head and flex her neck a bit to pop it, but nothing happened. She blinked ponderously, wondering both where the reflex had come from and why nothing had happened. She couldn't remember... anything. The majority of her mind was clouded like a valley covered in the haze of a thick fog.

That faint eerie blue light that seemed to be surrounding reflected on the ground around her seemed much more noticeable as the sun sank below the horizon and night came on. She tried to locate the source, craning her neck around slowly from side to side as much as the stiffness permeating her entire body would let her, but she could not locate it. It was only a mild annoyance to be sure, but right now it seemed the only thing she had any control over. She certainly had no control over the breeze; it was freezing, or she was. Her body was stiff, her mind was foggy, her heart wasn't beating...

Panic flared. Her heart wasn't beating?! How could that be?! She clutched at her chest clumsily, stiffly, attempting in vain to react in some fashion to this revelation when she felt it. A very very low, extremely faint beat. It couldn't have been more than a half dozen beats every minute, and so very faint it was a barely detectable thump deep within her chest. She froze, straining to hear the normal thud of a heartbeat issuing from her torso, but as the shot of adrenaline from her moment of panic wore off that had spurred her heart to life, it slowed ever more until finally ceasing again. Silence filled the air but for the ever faint breeze still tickling her cold skin. She waited, still trying to hear. It was a long stretch of time before anything happened, another ever faint solitary thump. It was so faint and so innocuous she could almost have sworn she hadn't heard anything at all. She didn't feel any pain. What was going on?!

A rustling in the bushes off to her left made her jump, and she attempted to lurch to her feet. Intense pain shot up her left leg and all through her left side and arm. She opened her mouth to scream, an other worldly echoing screech issuing forth that she had never heard before piercing the wind of the twilight air. It was several moments before she realized she was again laying face first against the ground, however this time she was panting and her heart had started again, if slowly. Her entire left side was fire and she groaned involuntarily, her throat still issuing that other worldly echo.

Realizing she was no longer alone, she craned her neck stiffly to see who had emerged from the bushes. A tall hooded figure with tall thin pointed ears sticking out of the tops of her hood and locks of gold jutting out from the very edges of her cowl was walking forth, red lights of her glowing eyes shining from her cowl and her cloak spread in the feeble breeze kicking behind her as she strode forward carrying a bow in one hand and a freshly killed rabbit in the other. The sheer presence of will and power emanating from this woman was such that it pierced the haze of pain. The woman knelt before her, setting her bow and the rabbit carefully to the side as she reached out a surprisingly gentle helping hand.

"The pain will lessen in time. How are you feeling aside from that? I did not mean to startle you, I thought you would not have awakened yet."

The woman's voice carried the same other worldly echo as her own had, and she could not help but feel overcome with an overwhelming sense of comfort as the woman drew up to her, as if she had been laden with a burden she had not known she carried and this woman had just lifted it from her shoulders. With the woman's assistance she managed to roll stiffly back over on to her back and resume her sitting position. She spoke the first words that sprang unbidden to the tip of her tongue.

"Am I dead...?" Even as the echo in her banshee-like voice died she knew it was a stupid question. If she was dead, how could she be moving about? But she had seen the undead, and the question re-formed on her tongue as she looked up into the glowing red eyes of this forceful woman, the red light of her eyes meshing into the blue glow around her. "Am I... undead...?"

The woman chuckled, a low earthy chuckle even with the echo. "Undead, yes. You died, but you have inherited the curse of undeath. Do you remember what happened?"

She shook her head vaguely, "No. I... it's all a haze..."

"Do you remember your name or anything about your life?"

"No, nothing..." she ran her hands over her head, still noticing the chill. "So it wasn't the wind after all..."

"The wind?" The woman looked confused.

"Nothing..." She looked up in to the woman's red eyes. "Who am I?"

"Your name in life, should you choose to retain it, was Melody Dawnrunner. You were a Warrior of the Crimson Blades of the Blood Elves of Silvermoon City. Does any of this ring a bell?"

Melody shook her head. "No..." She propped her elbow on her knee and rested her forehead against her hand, her red hair cascading forward around her as she tried to pierce the blanket of fog laying thickly over her mind, and glanced up as she did so, seeing a slight smirk on the woman's face. "... what?"

The woman issued another echoing chuckle. "It's just good to see you acting like yourself again, that's all."

"What do you mean?"

The woman gestured, "That posture. It's one I've seen you adopt numerous times, when you have something weighing upon your mind."

Melody blinked uncertainly and straightened up as much as she could under the stiffness that still clung to her like damp clothing. "You have? You knew me?"

"I did. Rather well, in fact."

"Who are you?" the woman opened her mouth to answer but a name burst in to Melody's mind to connect to the face before her, and she couldn't stop from echoing the name even as the woman herself said it, resulting in an odd quadruple echo as the two other worldly voices spoke simultaneously.

"Sylvanas..."

She nodded. "You remember me?"

Melody started to shake her head, then turned it in to a nod part way through. "N.. yes. Sort of. I mean, images, feelings..." Sudden anger bloomed in her and her and her eyes blazed. "Blast this infernal fog in my mind!" Sylvanas chuckled again. "What's so funny?!"

"You. It's normal, many undead experience these sorts of things as they awaken. It is frustrating, I know. It will take time for your memory to return and your mannerisms to reassert themselves. In the mean time things may be awkward for you, and you may not remember things you feel you should know. ... or you may remember them incorrectly... or even find you do not agree with your memory any longer..."

Melody looked up at the sudden... was it sadness? She peered up in to Sylvanas' eyes, and the woman turned her head away, obscuring her face partially by the edge of her cowl.

"... was... were we...?"

Sylvanas did not give her an opening to pursue any questions. "We should be moving. This area is not entirely safe, and I need to get you back to Undercity." Sylvanas leaned to the side and scooped up the rabbit and offered it to her. Melody recoiled. It smelled horrible, revolting even.

"What...?"

"Eat."

"Eat...?! It's a dead animal! It's revolting!"

"I'm not referring to it's flesh. The blood will help."

"That's vile!" Melody screwed up her face in revulsion.

"Do you want to be stiff and sore forever?!" Sylvanas sounded annoyed now. "It must be done or we will never move from this spot."

Gradually, painfully, Melody reached out for the rabbit. The soft fur slid along the cold skin of her fingers like silk along a blade. Her nose wrinkled involuntarily and her lips curled back in a snarl as she put the rabbit carcase to her mouth, but to her immense surprise, as she finally and tentatively touched the tip of her tongue to the trickles of blood oozing out of the animal, she found that the actual taste of the blood was... well, not horrible...

As Melody drank, Sylvanas continued speaking. "We are in the far eastern Plague Lands, far to the east of Undercity. Ebon Hold is to the south east, not too far from here, but we must avoid it. They will not welcome us there at this time."

Melody brushed her chin with the back of a finger, which she could not help immediately licking clean. "Why?"

"You, dear Melody, are the first of your kind. You are a Death Knight, but not any ordinary one. You are mine."

"I..." The rabbit slumped in her hands, forgotten for the moment. A jumble of emotions suddenly warred within her. A deep rooted pleasure, extreme pride, nervousness, but also an extreme guilt, coupled with a complexity that seemed to interlock all of these emotions together. The way Sylvanas had said that did not imply simple ownership. "What... do you mean?"

"You truly remember nothing of it?"

"No..."

Sylvanas sighed, and took up her bow as she stood. "Come, we must move. If we are found here, things will become... extremely uncomfortable." She reached a hand out to help the fledgling Death Knight to her feet.

"But my leg..."

"The blood should have helped your body enough to move."

To Melody's surprise she was able to stand without the pain from before, and her heart was actually beating at a steady, albeit slow, pace. It was an extremely peculiar feeling but she could actually feel the warmth of the freshly dead animal's blood being moved through her body. She leaned heavily on Sylvanas' arm and found herself momentarily cushioned in the crook of her shoulder and her side, and inexplicably her heart beat even faster. Melody blinked several times as she looked up at Sylvanas, who stood just enough taller that she had to tilt her chin up ever so slightly to meet her gaze, but Sylvanas again turned to look away, and that feeling of sadness momentarily hung in the air.

"Come. We will not make it to Undercity tonight, but we will need to put as much distance between us and this spot as we can. You can lean on me until you regain your balance."

Melody did have to lean on Sylvanas, clutching at her arm like a newborn as she tottered her first several steps, and as they moved down the slope it was at that moment in the light of the last fading rays of the sinking sun that Melody looked down at herself and saw she was clad in cracked and broken armor, covered in blood with what seemed to be still frozen bits of frost on the edges of it. This armor was no longer protective gear, it was now worthless, but if she discarded it she would effectively be naked. She stopped, unable to move for a moment, until Sylvanas, noticing what happened, took her kindly by the shoulder and urged her forward, guiding her onwards as Melody experienced the very surreal moment of, in effect, looking down at her own corpse.

"What... how...?"

"How did you die?" The other worldly echo followed the echoing of Melody's own question as Sylvanas glanced at her sideways. "In battle, as you'd always wanted. As you'd always planned on, in fact."

"I planned...?"

Sylvanas nodded as she helped Melody carefully pick her way down the slope of their hill towards a crease in the base that led up another slope opposite, a small gap between them large enough to serve as a walk way between the two.

"You fell in battle, albeit in an unusual circumstance. I will take you to show you where, it's not far from here. After I... recovered your body... I took you away from the battle in order to..." Sylvanas, paused, a very heavy pause, then back tracked. "I'll take you and show you."

"And I planned this?!" Melody was incredulous.

"No, you planned to die in battle. In the manner people plan to 'some day eventually' do something. You've been a warrior for many years, and the thought of dying old and decrepit always bothered you."

That did sound... feeble to her. Melody blinked ponderously as they walked, not really noticing that her muscles were slowly beginning to respond to her will easier. She raised the rabbit back to her lips subconsciously, not really realizing what she was doing, sucking idly on it as if it were a snack.

As they walked, they began to pass by signs of battle. Debris lying in testament to the furious confrontation that had obviously taken place near by. Dropped or discarded weapons or bits of armor began to be visible, here and there only at first, but with increasing frequency as the further towards the crevice between the two hills they came. There were even a few personal items scattered here and there, and at one point a catapult wheel came into view, though where the rest of it was at that moment was anyone's guess.

"Why is no one out here salvaging anything? Most of this equipment is still usable."

Sylvanas smirked at her charge. "Always the practical thinker. It's why I chose you in the first place. It's our proximity to Ebon Hold. The Death Knights will be sending out search and salvage parties soon, and no one wants to tangle with them right now."

"They aren't our allies? But I thought you said I..."

"You're a ... unique case."

At that moment they were passing by a discarded equipment pack, the contents of which were strewn all over, and in the moonlight reflecting off of a metal canteen Melody caught her reflection. An athletic yet very sensuously formed Blood Elf stared back at her, toned and built like a warrior, but shapely in all the right places. Fiery red hair cascaded down around her to her waist, and though stiff still she carried herself like a practiced warrior. But...

Her skin was so pale, she could see now. The paleness of a corpse. And her eyes... cold glowing blue eyes stared back at her...

She reached up absently halfway to her face. "That's where the blue glow is coming from...?

Sylvanas looked at her questioningly. "Blue glow?"

Melody lowered her hand. "Nothing." She turned away from her reflection to walk onwards, tossing the rabbit carcass aside casually, finished with the blood from within, not wanting to really think about it any longer than necessary. "So then... why were we in battle?"

Sylvanas sighed in mild annoyance. "You keep jumping around with all of these questions. Shall I simply start from the beginning?"

"Please. You've said we have quite a walk, after all. And we have the mood lighting..." she glanced up at the night sky as the starts slowly began to twinkle.

Sylvanas laughed, a full echoing laugh this time. "I'm glad to see your sense of humor returning. I shall go quite a bit back to the beginning and give you a full story, however first, let us climb the next hill so I may show you what I'd promised."

Melody nodded in acquiescence, and they continued onward up the opposing slope. She kept an eye on the scenery as they walked, trying to absorb anything that might jog her memory and help lift the blanket fog upon her mind.

"The Death Knights of Ebon Hold have just recently broken free of the Lich King's control during the Battle of Light's Hope Chapel." Sylvanas said in a very neutral tone, her eyes and echoing voice betraying no hint of emotional reaction to the information she was imparting. "The Lich King launched an attack on the Paladins there in an attempt to cripple the Silver Hand, but he was defeated by an ancient blade wielded by the light's champions there given to them by one of his own Death Knights as he broke free of his control, and as the Lich King fled, his power weakened by this defeat, more and more Death Knights under his control have begun regaining their own free will and re-integrating themselves into the factions they left behind in life."

"Who is the Lich King?"

Sylvanas glanced sideways at her charge as they walked, a faint look of surprise flickering through her red eyes at this question. "You do not even recall that?"

Melody growled in annoyance, the other worldly echo casting a dangerous tone in her voice. "You keep saying in surprise that I don't remember anything. Didn't I say I don't remember anything at all? Is it really that surprising?"

Sylvanas shook her head and raised a hand to forestall Melody's annoyance. "Peace, my _mirwa_. I am just continually surprised by it. I did mention that it is not uncommon to have memory problems when first awakening in Undeath, however it not usually so complete a loss as yours seems to be. It is most common to at least remember one's name and at least where they came from, and barring that to recall major world events of people of great import. You seem to remember nothing at all."

Melody cast a look over at Sylvanas, blue glow meeting red in the deepening evening darkness, the two women stopping in the night's air for a moment to consider the other. It should have combined in to a purple glow, but in an eerie fashion it did not, each color seeming to fight for dominance but neither gaining any upper hand over the other. Just one more oddity to punctuate the surrealism of the evening, Melody thought idly as their eyes searched the face of the other.

Melody sighed slightly, the echo in her voice causing it to sound almost like a ghostly moan. "I'm sorry, I did not mean to snap. I'm just so… lost, right now. You're the only thing that seems familiar so far, but only in such a way as a dream you don't recall is familiar when something in the waking world reminds you of it in an abstract fashion. I remember… feelings…" Melody took a step forward and reached a hand up towards Sylvanas. She didn't move away from Melody's hand, but the air grew suddenly icy, Sylvanas' face hardening slightly, but not in anger. It was more of a look of pain, of worry… of loss…? They froze in mid-position for several moments, hand outstretched only half way, no real target on Sylvanas obvious for the hand's destination, before Melody sighed again and let her hand fall back to her side. "They are all jumbled though, like a memory of a feeling, or an echo of a dream that's so knotted up you can't sort through them. They are there, though, but only for you. Anyone else, or anything other than that…" Melody glanced around at the strewn battlefield, and shrugged helplessly. She did remember one thing; she absolutely hated feeling helpless…

Sylvanas spoke, a questioning note in her tone, and again that hint of sadness. "So… you don't remember anything about me at all? I'd assumed when you spoke my name…"

"I have your name, and my knot of emotions I can't unravel. That is all."

"So you do not know who I am."

"No."

There was a very pregnant pause, a silence between them as the women stared at each other for another long moment. Staring in to Sylvanas' face, Melody could almost remember something about her, about a constant impassive mask to give away nothing, about a commanding and forceful demeanor always in place, cracked only in very intimate moments… a shadow of a memory that dissipated like smoke as soon as she reached for it.

"… you called me… '_mirwa_' ?"

Sylvanas broke the moment by turning away with a curt "Nothing. It's not important." And gesturing that they continue. For a very brief moment, Melody could have sworn Sylvanas was going to reach out for her. She continued her explanation.

"I am Sylvanas Windrunner, Banshee Queen and ruler of the Forsaken and Undercity, our capital. I command all of the undead in existence save for the Scourge, those minions of the undead commanded by the Lich King himself, and save for the Death Knights of Ebon Hold."

"So you do not command me?" Melody could not keep the sadness from her echoing voice.

A heat entered Sylvanas' voice, however it wasn't an anger but a vehemence in the return echo. "I do command you. You are mine!"

"You said that before. What does it mean?"

"You asked who the Lich King is. Arthas Menethil was his name when he was alive, and he has caused untoward suffering and agony to thousands of souls." Real anger flared in Sylvanas' tone, ringing off the silent landscape around them as her echo permeated the air. "He is interested in nothing more than the dominance of his own rulership and the destruction of everyone else. He is a monster and must be put down like one for what he has done to me and to the rest of Azeroth!"

The pure hatred in Sylvanas' voice was so intense that Melody could almost feel it prickling her own cold skin. She had a sudden impulse to reach out, to comfort Sylvanas, to embrace her and try to sooth her. She had no idea where the impulse came from, and she squashed it. This did not seem an appropriate time or place for such a thing. Instead she remained silent and continued walking along beside the Banshee Queen, allowing her a moment to compose herself. After a minute Sylvanas continued her explanations once more.

"The Lich King controls his minions through dark necromantic and blood magics, and has to maintain direct mental control over all of them. He has lost control over some in the past, and I have taken them into my fold to bolster our forces in service to the Horde, but he has never lost control over such powerful minions as the Death Knights before. Once they rebelled after regaining their free will, they have fought tooth and nail to keep Ebon Hold under their own control, and as the last few weeks have passed and they have began reintegrating into their races' home factions, they have requested aide in further securing the area around Ebon Hold. They won their battle for their home base, but the surrounding countryside is still littered with the scourge under the Lich King's control, and as the fight continues they have found that they needed aide in securing it. Being that Undercity is closest, the Warchief requested I bring aide to their defense seeing as we have gained several valuable new allies from the Death Knights already, and I agreed because this is so near my own territory."

Sylvanas paused to give Melody a few moments to process all of this information. The moon was rising over the horizon now, casting it's ghostly light down upon the littered battlefield, creating a rather eerie effect, however Melody found it oddly… comforting now. The calm and stillness of it all was nice. She began to notice the bodies as they passed the outer edges of the battlefield, men and women of various races lay about, their limbs twisted in odd ways or sprawled how they fell, and while she didn't care for the bodies themselves, she still enjoyed the stillness. This seemed a new feeling, however. Somehow she doubted she had enjoyed anything like it in life.

"So… we are part of a horde."

"The Horde." Sylvanas corrected as she led them around the destroyed remains of a catapult that had been facing a now smashed fortification. "The two major factions at war within our realm of Azeroth are the Alliance, made up of the Humans, Night Elves, Draeni, Dwarves, and Gnomes," She pointed almost idly at various examples around them amongst the bodies of the fallen around them as they walked, "And the Horde, made up of the Orcs, Trolls, Tauren, Blood Elves, and my Forsaken. We are enemies, though we share the Scourge as a common enemy."

"And this… Warchief?"

"The Warchief is the leader of all of the Horde. While each race has it's own racial leader and the Warchief does not rule us directly by running our cities or dictating our laws and customs, we do bow to him and the laws he sets down above us on a faction level, and we must adhere to them above ours, and when he calls we obey."

"And he commanded that you ride to this battle?"

"Yes. I did have my own interests in it, however."

"Since it was so close to your territory you said."

"Correct. I do not like my borders threatened. I doubt any ruler does."

"And you… er…" Melody tripped over her words here. "… found me here…?"

Sylvanas shook her head, leading them up the slope of another small hill, at the top of which Melody could see the broken remnants of what looked like a battlement wall. Enough rubble was piled around it and scattered down the slope that it would have stood a good twenty feet high, a formidable wall for such a temporary camp. Melody blinked, wondering where those thoughts had come from as Sylvanas continued.

"You were… part of my forces." The hesitation in her voice was so brief in that sentence, so quickly there and then gone again, that Melody almost thought she'd imagined it. Almost. "The Forsaken are mostly comprised of undead humans I have raised, though some are not human, and our forces are mostly bolstered by my raising those of the Alliance that I defeat in battle to replace my numbers, though that fact is not widely known."

Melody looked at Sylvanas. "You are not human." It wasn't a question.

"No, I was Quel'Dorei in life, a High Elf., before Arthas…" She trailed off, and the shadow of a look of pain crossed her face before flitting away again. "The Sin'Dorei, the Blood Elves, came directly from my people, and so I have close ties to them, though I am technically no longer one of them. I consider them… well, almost as those alive might consider extended familial relations. The leader of the Sin'Dorei is Lor'Themar Theron, and while our political relationship has been strained in the past, we are still amicable. We frequently lend each other assistance behind the scenes when needed."

Melody blinked. "So I am just like you then?"

Sylvanas shook her head as she picked her way around an outcropping on the hill, Melody following close behind her. "Not exactly. I was a Ranger that was raised by Arthas as a Banshee, and then restored to my body later. I am not a Death Knight, as you are. And in life I was a High Elf, and you were a Blood Elf. In truth, the differences are minor, but they are there."

Melody did not fail to note the past tense in Sylvanas' phrasings. "But if you control the Forsaken, and this… Lor'Themar? … controls the Blood Elves, how was I part of your forces?"

Sylvanas was silent for a few moments, and Melody got the distinct impression that she was not about to receive a whole answer. Not that she thought Sylvanas would lie to her, but a partial answer to satisfy without giving away anything she did not want to. Melody was again not certain where she was getting the impressions that she was, but she was becoming more and more convinced as Sylvanas said things or reacted in certain ways to her questions that there was much more between them than she was letting on. Why wouldn't she tell her? Was there something wrong that Melody just couldn't remember? What was going on?

"As I said, Lor'Themar and I frequently assist each other behind the scenes. Not so much because we like each other as because we are unified in a cause. I admit, I do not like him much, but I am concerned for the well being of the Sin'Dorei. So we trade aide to see to the betterment of our people. In this case, I had requested his aid in some elite troops for the battle that I was marching towards. Forsaken are good as soldiers when raised, but I lack the ability to make true champions… or I did, until very recently that is. So he agreed to lend me the aid of and elite but secret battle group called the Crimson Blade."

"That's the group you mentioned earlier that I was a part of."

"Yes. The Crimson Blade functions as a secret enforcement organization in service to Lor'Themar Theron."

"That seems rather… militant."

Sylvanas raised an eyebrow at Melody. "That's a rather opinionated comment for one who remembers nothing of it." She noted wryly.

Melody shook her head as if to clear it, hauling herself up a particularly steep knot in the incline as they continued to ascend towards the battlement ruin at the top of the hill. "I'm not sure where it came from. I keep having thoughts or feelings form, only to have them blow away with the wind when I try to reach for them."

"I still expect that to resolve itself with time," Sylvanas said, "Though I still find it troubling how complete your memory loss is." She looked around as they crested the top of the hill, coming up to the ruined battlement. "And this, _mirwa_, is where you died."

Melody caught the word again, and the fact that this time Sylvanas' tone was laced with both sadness and… was that affection? She couldn't tell for sure, but she was rather distracted suddenly. They had just reached the side of what remained of the broken battlement wall. As tall as the scattered stone around the ground had indicated it had stood when complete, the thing stood no more than five or six feet high now. There were a few other bodies strewn around, some not even whole, pieces missing from what looked like huge bites taken out of them judging by the massive teeth wounds in evidence on them, though as with most thoughts Melody could not say where the recognition had come from. Glancing down the wall a little way she saw a broken helmet and a few dented scraps of armor strewn on the ground relative to where they might have landed when discarded that exactly matched the cracked and destroyed fragments of useless armor she now wore, and she approached the spot carefully and knelt on the ground, Sylvanas hanging back a little bit, watching Melody as she almost reverently laid a hand upon the wall next to the bits of metal that could no longer be called protective gear. She crouched there, kneeling against the wall for several long minutes before saying anything.

"How… did it…?"

Sylvanas caught the meaning and took a few steps closer. "A Frost Wyrm."

"Frost Wyrm…"

"A great skeletal raised dragon of the Scourge. I didn't see it personally as I was within the command tent at the time, but according to my reports, Ebon Hold thought that all of the Frost Wyrms had been dealt with, but one that had taken a wound had gone to ground after the battle of Light's Hope Chapel, and laid dormant as the rest of the Scourge withdrew. During this battle, it awoke and as it withdrew it took out your battlement and a couple of others that were stationed nearby. It was—"

Sylvanas' voice was lost to Melody's ears as her mind suddenly reeled, a vision flashing in to her mind briefly, and she could see it. A great, skeletal dragon flapping it's giant bone wings, the evening's light glinting off it's pearly marrow almost like a mirror, roaring over head as it soared out of nowhere during the fight. She was standing on the battlement, sent to help cover a gap in the lines, right in the front of it's path as it came toward her, and the frost wyrm descended, opening it's huge mouth, it's massive maw gaping wider than a castle door, icy breath coalescing in the air as it's gigantic torso bulged outward with it's breath and it heaved out a spray of icy searing air, the sound of air rushing past and crystallizing around her, the pop and snap it forcing it's way in to the crevices of her armor, shattering it, the cold and pain overtook her, a scream, darkness…

It was her. She was screaming. And she was clutching at something hard and unyielding yet soft and gentle.

"Shhhh… shhhh… _mirwa_, I'm here… shhhh…"

Melody opened her eyes. She was shivering, an overwhelming wave of coldness seeming as though it was passing through her. She'd thought she was cold before. Would she ever be warm again? She looked up and realized for the first time that she was in Sylvanas' arms. The Banshee Queen had knelt and scooped her from where she'd fallen and was cradling her against her armored chest plate. The images in her mind slowly faded from the vivid recollection they had been into the more fuzzy vague one of a normal memory, and slowly, agonizingly, Melody stopped shivering. She looked up at Sylvanas.

"What…" She paused, still clinging to Sylvanas. "What… does '_mirwa_' mean?"

Sylvanas stopped all movement, but did not let go. Melody had stopped shivering and also was not moving, and to anyone who walked by they might have been very lifelike statues for all the movement there was between them. It struck Melody in that moment how very very still the undead could remain, how undeath required no movement what so ever, but to Melody the war suddenly raging in Sylvanas' eyes was plain and required no movement to witness. She didn't know if she could read it on Sylvanas' because of the onrush of memory she had just or from their interactions of the evening thus far. She couldn't say if it was due to her collapse or just the circumstances of them being at the site where she'd died, but something had triggered a protective response in the Banshee Queen, an intimate response that was, to her at least, just as clear that Sylvanas was both unused to the feeling and uncomfortable with it. It was also just as obvious to Melody, however, that she wanted to experience it, and her outward mask of cold calculation was now at war with her desire to protect.

Finally Sylvanas spoke. "It is Thalassian. It means 'precious.' Have you even forgotten the language of your heritage as well?"

Melody stared up at Sylvanas, still cradled against the cold hard metal of her armor and wrapped in the cold soft flesh of her arms. "I… suppose so." She looked deep in to Sylvanas' eyes, searching. "There was something between us… wasn't there?"

Sylvanas turned her head away, breaking the eye contact, her long thin elven ears twitching in agitation, a gesture of emotion she would normally never have allowed to show. Melody's own ears lay flat against her head, the emotional knot she had been feeling sitting like a lump in her chest as she waited for Sylvanas to speak.

"We…" Sylvanas took a breath, a measure of agitation more than any real need for air. She did not turn her head back. "We… yes. There is. Was. I don't know anymore."

"Why not?"

"Before the battle, we had had… a fight. Our feelings had blossomed suddenly and intensely, and then a complication had arisen, and we fought. And then…then…"

"Then I died…"

"Yes." Sylvanas hissed. The hints of sadness that had entered Sylvanas' voice before was suddenly back in force, the other worldly echo in her voice laced now with both sadness and pain "I never wanted this… I didn't want you to die… undeath is a curse, but I couldn't… I couldn't leave you at peace… when I heard you'd fallen I…"

Melody was overcome with emotion, that knot absolutely refusing to unravel, but pulsing harder than ever. "So when you said I was yours so fiercely earlier… You didn't just mean under your command…"

Sylvanas shook her head. "I… I saw Arthas once raise a Death Knight… when he first learned how to do it… I was still under his control when I saw it, a very long time ago, but… the necromancer that was showing him… I saw how… but my will was not my own at that time, and it was not until very recently that I remembered what I'd seen, and how to make sense of it… I spent long hours thinking about it, considering it, and I was certain I had come up with a way to blend my magics into the process to improve it, to make an even more powerful than normal Death Knight, and I thought that this might be a way to raise champions for the Forsaken that could rival those of the Scourge, the likes of which I had never been able to bolster my forces with before!" Sylvanas had a frenzied sound to her voice now, as though she were trying to justify it to herself more than explain to Melody. The tones coming from her would have understandably concerned anyone.

Sylvanas continued in a quieter tone, "... but I didn't want to try it just on any random person. It had to be a stronger than average champion for my initial trial. In the normal course of raising a Death Knight that the Lich King does or even that they do in Ebon Hold, Paladins most often become Death Knights, but the strongest and deadliest of them are exceptionally powerful warriors, and I thought that if I could find an especially skilled warrior and simultaneously try my improvement, that the result would be the most powerful champion the Forsaken had ever known, maybe even the strongest Death Knight to ever exist!"

The zeal suddenly left Sylvanas' voice as she exhaled sharply in exasperation, again more for punctuation of her feeling than any need for air. Her agitation had mounted so far that she was really cracking her mask for Melody. Or was it that Melody had already cracked that mask in life...?

"But not you… we'd had a fight, but I'd never wanted this for you… but I couldn't… I couldn't just let you… let you die…"

A single tear trickled down the cheek of the Banshee Queen. The coolest, most calm, collected, and arguably, most dangerous leader of the Horde, who was known far and wide as unflappable and always in control, had shed a tear for her. If Melody had not been overwhelmed before, this would have done it, and, finally moving from where she'd been laying in Sylvanas' arms, she leaned up and wrapped her arms around the Banshee Queen's neck, embracing her.

Melody did not yet know, did not remember yet, what this woman was to her. Queen, ruler, rescuer, confidant, friend, lover... the uncertainty hung thick in her mind alongside the fog that so covered it. She knew, however, that whatever happened, from here forth, their paths were one. Everything else aside, Melody was the very first creation of a new type of Champion of the Forsaken, sired by Sylvanas, and no matter what happened that could never change now. The rest would have to come in time.

"I was concerned you wouldn't remember me, worried that undeath would erase or alter your memories of feelings of me. That can happen, sometimes. I wanted to tell you about how you came in to my service and how we developed, but I didn't want to force something that wasn't there or that might have changed..." Sylvanas' ears lay flat as she spoke this admission out loud, "I thought you might... hate me now... for cursing you with undeath... That happens sometimes, too... but I just couldn't let you go..."

Melody leaned close into the hollow of Sylvanas' neck, pressing her face into the cloth of her cowl, and though there was no one alive within earshot, whispered in as tender of a tone as her other worldly echoing voice would allow, "I forgive you for the curse of undeath, and I am touched I mean enough to you that you could not let me go."

Sylvanas' ears twitched in agitation again, and she turned get head, finally making eye contact again, a light of hope sparkling in her face as glowing red eyes met glowing blue. "You forgive me... but you don't remember me... you don't remember us..."

"No. But if you'll help me, I'll try."

Sylvanas wrapped her arms tightly around Melody's waist and the two women clung to each other as the moon, still rising over head, bathed them in it's light.


	2. Chapter 2 - Dawnrunner

Author's note: As per usual, all copyrights to Blizzard, I don't claim to own anything that's theirs. I'm just a crazy fan nerd. ^.^

Also as usual, I don't know Thalassian, just getting elven words from random fiction sights for effect. Hehe

I appreciate the support I've already gotten, both from friends and the community. Keep it comings, I have lots planned! I hope everyone is enjoying!

* * *

It had taken some time before Melody and Sylvanas has had regained their composure after Sylvanas had shown Melody the spot at which she had met her death. Sylvanas had recovered more quickly, either due to the fact that she had long years of practice at keeping her emotions under a tight reign to maintain her mask of the cool unflappable Banshee Queen or because this was not her own grave site, but as the moon began to approach it's peak in the sky Melody had sat back and gotten a hold of herself. And she now looked at Sylvanas with an odd expression on her face, the expression only an undead could ask.

"What was it like? Before I died, I mean. You said that we were…" Her echoing voice broke and she blinked, then started again. "You said I was part of some operative group…?

Sylvanas nodded slowly, "I did promise you some explanation, didn't I? Well, let me go back a little way, I'll need to start with the events that led you to my service…"

* * *

The dark red earth of the hill spread out in steep slope downward, dark red and cracked from long years of tortured dry air and magmatic ashes blowing on the wind. The sun beat down hard on everyone and everything in the area, furthering the hardening of the broken landscape. No greenery grew here, no plans or trees or even grass anywhere within sight. What vegetation there was in existence was as cracked and dead as the land itself was. It was not very friendly to elven kind.

Melody Dawnrunner peered down from the craggy outcropping she was crouched behind near the peak of the slope, watching, waiting. Her quarry was due to be passing by any moment, according to her intelligence, and she would be ready. The weight of her sword strapped to her back was a comfort, as it always was, as she waited, the heat of the moment building in anticipation of the action to come. This would not be a battle, however, or it wasn't planned to be. Everything had been orchestrated ahead of time, and if everything went exactly as planned, she would not need her weapon for this particular assignment. She still drew comfort from it, however. Most warriors did, she thought. For a good warrior, a weapon was a part of you, an extension of yourself, as a limb might be. Not like a Paladin, for whom a weapon was no more than a tool to be used, a focus for their holy powers.

The hulking figure of the ruins of Uldaman loomed behind her in the distance, moss covered broken stone raking the sky in a jagged line, no doubt swarming in dwarves combing the ruins for artifacts from the ancient Iron Dwarves. She was not interested, however. She had her orders, and Lor'Themar Theron had said nothing of Uldaman. Her focus was all on the path at the foot of the hill she was concealed on the crest of. The path was in truth little more than a slightly worn trail cleared of the heated red dust that blanketed the badlands from the volcanic ash and other debris blown about by the acrid wind, beaten clean by wear of many travelers' boots as they crossed the same place time and again. Did they not realize the amount of predictability this offered someone who might be about for nefarious reasons? Amateurs…

The hilltop she occupied was right at the bend of this path as it traveled east from a very small camp east of Kargath, bending up and around the hill in a north easterly direction, and any moment her quarry was due to come in to sight, traveling east along the road, and once he reached the foot of her hill he would follow the road upwards and be out of sight of the camp as he went along whatever business he was about. His business did not concern her; she was simply here to carry out her orders in the service of Silvermoon. For that was the express purpose of the Crimson Blade. She did not much care for the Reagent Lord as a person or even as a leader; in her opinion, Lor'Themar Theron had no backbone, no real drive. He was so afraid of making the wrong decisions that he made none at all and as a result the Sin'Dorei looked aloof and withdrawn, useless and unhelpful. It hurt her peoples' image, and the Blood Elves really needed all the help they could get. They were still new to the Horde, and they could not afford to have the other races or the Warchief see them as weak. And so she fought, not for Lor'Themar Theron, but for Silvermoon, for her people.

Below her the front gates of the small camp opened slowly, the ratcheting sounds of the wooden gears working as they pulled the gates wide lost even to her sensitive elven ears at this distance. She slowly tensed her muscles up in readiness, her heart beating just a little faster as adrenaline flooded her system in anticipation of the moment. She glanced to her side to check on the shield she had brought with her. There was no need to, she knew that, but a quick visual check never hurt. It was a giant round metal monstrosity, far too large for her or indeed for most except a stout protective warrior or paladin. She didn't like shields, and she glowered at it, the image of the owner flashing into her mind in annoyance before she squashed it. That wasn't why she'd brought it, however, and it was with that thought that she glanced across the way, down on the opposite side of the broken ground of the path below her, to a narrow raised ledge in the ground several yards distant directly opposite her position on the other side. It wasn't actually that narrow, she knew. As any good operative had, she'd gone over the entire area personally days before the mission actually begun in order to learn the terrain and formulate backup plans for any foreseeable eventualities. The ledge was actually several yards wide and the sheer ledge on the other side of it was no more than a ten or fifteen foot drop. It was enough though, and it was only from her vantage point so high up on the peak of a hill that it looked narrow.

Her green eyes followed Lotwil Veriatus as the tiny gnome exited the camp gates and began his trek east along the cracked path, his tiny legs kicking up little dust as he flitted along, a look of ponderous vacancy on his face as he clearly contemplated something completely unrelated to surrounding landscape or his journey as he made his oblivious way towards Dustwind Dig. Gnomes did this often from her understanding, always thinking about something else, their heads frequently in the clouds as they thought about anything but what was in their immediate vicinity. Melody crouched lower behind her craggy hiding spot as she tracked his progress along the worn trail, waiting for him to reach the bend in the along the path that would take him around her hill and out of eyesight of his small camp.

It took nearly a quarter of an hour for the gnome to come to the bend in the path that would take him out of eye shot of his camp, but as Lotwil rounded the hill along the path's shallow curve, Melody was ready. He was going to stop in surprise when he heard the noise, she was sure, and she took this in to account as gauged her timing, readying herself and leaned out from her craggy hiding place. She took up the big round heavy metal shield, and watched his progress around the base of the hill… watched… waiting…

Melody was airborne for only the moment or two it took for her to hit the side of the hill after launching herself from behind the crag, her leg muscles uncoiling from her crouch in a huge leap, her long thin elven ears laying back nearly touching her head, and there was a loud clang as she came down on the side of the steep slope, landing on the metal shield as if it were a sled. Gravity took over, and the roar began, a sound like a continuous thunder clap as metal ground against stone and hard earth, a dust cloud kicking up behind her following her descent and sparks flying around her as the various rocks and other debris furnished by the dead landscape of the Badlands ground against the cast iron of the shield as she thundered down the hillside at a breakneck speed. Lotwil did indeed pause as his ears caught the cry of the protesting natural fuselage the shield skated across, and he turned in mild surprise to see what the noise was. Surprise turned to alarmed shock as he realized what was going on, but by then it was far too late. He turned to run, but made it only a step or two before Melody's momentum overtook him, and she grabbed the gnome around the waist as she flew by. He began to screech in a high pitched gnomish voice, but no one was around to hear him.

Had he been any bigger than a gnome actually was, this maneuver would never have worked; any larger creature's mass and weight would have overpowered her momentum, knocking her off the shield and sending both of them tumbling. Gnomes, however, are only a few feet tall and don't weigh much, and moreover, this particular gnome is a mage, so no additional weight of armor to worry about. Melody hung on while her momentum carried them both across the path and with a great swooping whoosh up the small slope of the opposite ledge and sent them airborne.

Lotwil Veriatus squealed like a pig at slaughter.

For one very long moment the world seemed to slow as they hung in the air like ornaments on a mantle, the ash particles in the harsh dry air plainly visible as they hung suspended for that brief moment, the ground so far away but so very discernible to Melody's heightened senses as the adrenaline of the moment sang in her veins, the only sound in the whole entire world that of the squealing terrified gnome wrapped in her grip. It was very surreal, and very ridiculous. He was in no danger of falling to death; he was a mage, he could easily blink to the ground. They weren't even high enough up for the fall to be lethal, unless he happened to be unfortunate enough to land on his head. A broken arm or legs at the worst was all he really had to fear, but panic had taken over his mind at the completely random circumstance and speed with which she had blindsided him, and he was not thinking clearly at the moment.

With a soft whumph they landed on the carpet, Melody now basically sitting cross legged on a stationary upside down shield, their downward momentum canceled out by the magic carpet's upward lift as it was guided by it's owner. Lotwil was still squealing and clutching tightly to Melody's shoulders, not having realized they were no longer in free-fall, and Melody took the opportunity to relieve the gnome of his staff short staff and bind his hands and feet together, and as his squeal finally began to die off, she doused him with a damp cloth coated in an alchemical mix to induce sleep, and the frightened gnome slipped into unconsciousness.

Narinth, the owner of the magic carpet they had landed on, glanced back over her shoulder as the carpet lifted in to the air, arching up and away towards the deeper hills. "Beldis is going to have a fit if you scratched his shield up, you know."

Melody carefully lifted herself up and slid the shield out from under herself, flipping it over into her lap to examine the surface of it. The front glowed ever so faintly with it's enchanted properties, and not a scratch marred it's overly polished surface. She glared as Beldis' face popped into her mind again, and she growled, "I'm tempted to toss it over the side and pretend I accidentally lost the thing."

Narinth laughed, a high sound that was caught by the wind as she pointed the carpet down into a nearby hillside far back into the mountainous wall on the very edge of the Badlands. "I'd love to see that! Maybe he'd finally stop chasing you if you did that! It's a close thing whether he's more smitten with you or that shield."

Melody glowered at the shield, very seriously considering making good on her threat, even glancing over the side of the carpet to see how easily it would disappear into the landscape if she tossed it. "Don't tempt me. I've done everything I can to dissuade that man! He won't leave me alone!"

"Why don't you like him? He's tall and handsome…"

"And an utter moron." Melody snorted much more forcefully than strictly necessary. "Men are useless in general with their raging egos and oversized pride, but that one particular is a particularly bad example of it. I've never had even the faintest interest in him or any other man."

"So… it's true what they say about you…?" Narinth ventured cautiously.

"What do they say?"

"Well…" Narinth was facing away from Melody, watching where they were flying, but she had the distinct impression that she was blushing and trying not to let her see it. "They say that you… err… prefer…."

Melody interrupted, cutting Narinth off and pointing down at the hill they were now approaching. "That's our evac point. Lor'Themar will be expecting us any minute."

Narinth put them down gently on the top of the hill without further comment, landing them gently and waiting for Melody to move Lotwil off of the magic carpet so she could roll it up and stow it away. Then she raised her hands high over her head and began to mumble under her breath, and after a few moments there was a whoosh of air being sucked into a vacuum as atmosphere collided with atmosphere with the opening of the portal that opened before Narinth, a round hole in the air that rotated into existence before them, replacing their view of the broken angry red landscape of the Badlands with that of a heavily embroidered carpet in a palace of sleek curved marble architecture. Without waiting, they stepped through into the palace of Silvermoon, Melody carrying the gnome with the shield on her back.

Reagent Lord Lor'Themar Theron, leader of the Sin'Dorei and representative of the Blood Elves to the Horde, founder of the Crimson Blade, stood waiting for them as they stepped foot through the portal into a private room within the Silvermoon Palace specifically used by the Crimson Blade for covert transport. He was not alone; Beldis stood off to the side and slightly behind him, and he leered at Melody in a fashion that he probably thought was a winning smile, raking his eyes first down then back up her figure. He was wrong.

Seeing Melody carrying Lotwil Veriatus and therefore concluding a successful mission, Lor'Themar broke in to a broad smile. "Excellent, Melody! I had no doubt in my mind that you would once again be able to carry out a successful assignment! You have never failed in any task given to you in the service of Silvermoon!" He paused for a few moments, his smile slipping a bit. "Even if your... methods have usually left something to be desired."

Melody wordlessly handed the gnome and the shield over to Beldis who transferred his leering gaze from her, thankfully, to his shield, inspecting it carefully for any signs of scratches or marring. She turned away from him, shifting her eyes to meet Lor'Themar's and offered a salute.

"I wish only to serve Silvermoon, my lord."

"Of course you do. And I am incredibly pleased that you perform your duty so very admirably." He turned briefly to Narinth, "How did she do it?"

Narinth saluted as well and proceeded to explain to Lor'Themar what Melody's set up had been and how she had accomplished her assigned abduction task. When a Crimson Blade operative was given an assignment, they were given only an objective, and it was up to them to carry it out in whatever fashion they deemed necessary. They were given all the intelligence related to the objective, such as troop movements or faction activity or even individual personality or habit reports, but the actual acting out of their assignment was completely at their discretion, and Melody was known for doing things in an… impressive way.

And as Lor'Themar and Beldis listened to this recounting from Narinth's witnessing of the way in which Melody carried out her most recent duty, their mouths slowly fell open and their faces slowly transformed into a look of disbelieving incredulity. Melody shifted her weight from one foot to another in a minor outward sign of discomfort, as she wasn't prone to much outward sign; it wasn't that big of a deal, at least she didn't think it was. All she'd done was ride a metal disc down a hillside. Narinth had done the hard part in watching from her vantage point at the end and timing things to catch them. But the way she was telling it, Melody sounded like a grand heroine out of some story or fable. Not that she said anything inaccurately, but…

Lor'Themar managed to close his mouth as the tale concluded and he shook his head in disbelief. "I told you to abduct Lotwil, not to make a scene."

"Scene?" Melody blinked, not understanding. She did not want to be overly praised, but why did he suddenly sound unhappy with her?

"I did not want anyone to know anything had happened."

"I was not seen. There were no witnesses, Reagent Lord."

"What if someone saw the dust trail you left? It would have been a simple thing to track you from there."

Melody was suddenly angry. She had never failed in an assignment, yet this was not the first criticism he had ever offered on her methods. Everyone else seemed impressed, why then was he never satisfied with her work? It was supposed to be the operatives' choice on how they carried out their assignments!

"I was not-"

Lor'Themar interrupted her. "How can you be sure you were not seen? How can you be absolutely positive?"

Melody was sure. She had studied the camp for days, she knew it's layout, it's visibility angles, it's inhabitant's habitual patterns. She knew the surrounding area and she knew who came and went and at what times. She knew all this, and yet she could say nothing in her own defense, for any objection she offered he would overrule with his usual fall back argument. So she remained silent and stiffly at attention, and waited for her usual reprimand.

Lor'Themar sighed in exasperation before going on, proving Melody's immediate thoughts on his typical standpoint. "No matter how thorough a plan, no matter how efficient the operative, there is always the factor of random chance. No matter what you do, you cannot be completely certain that everything went exactly as you had anticipated."

Melody stood there, rigid and unmoving, a look of what she hoped was impassiveness frozen on her face, waiting for Lor'Themar to conclude his reprimand. There was nothing else she could have done, no further action she could have taken, however she was beginning to feel that there was nothing she could do please him. And the dishonor was only mounting by the fact that he was giving her this lecture in front of others. How could he shame her in this fashion? Why did no one else receive these criticisms? By his own logic everyone was guilty of the same thing and no one could ever truly conclude an assignment in complete success.

She was startled when Narinth actually spoke up in her defense suddenly, and by the looks on their faces Lor'Themar and Beldis were equally surprised. "With respect, Reagent Lord, you place your faith in us as operatives, and give us free reign to carry out our assignments how we feel is best warranted in every situation. If you are so concerned about the element of random chance, why would you allow us this freedom? If we take every reasonable precaution, why then would you call us down for our actions?"

Melody did not miss the fact that Narinth included herself in this by stating "us" as she spoke despite the fact that she had not been the one under scrutiny in this case, and she appreciated the fact Narinth was trying to stick up for her, but all it really did in Melody's mind was increase her shame overall. It injured her pride as a warrior, and she did not want anyone to witness it, even if she did feel it was unjustified.

Lor'Themar was silent for some time before responding to Narinth's question. "I do not doubt that every operative I have selected performs to the best of their abilities; it is indeed for this reason that I have hand selected each of my operatives personally. This sort of hand selected process helps to minimize the possibilities of acquiring a retainer that does not perform to my expectations, but does not preclude the possibility of such an occurrence. This is a new organization after all, and I must be extremely careful in whom I allow to continue in such a role. Performance alone is not everything, after all, and I must be prudent."

The veiled threats in this statement were so subtle that most would not have caught them; it would have seemed to most that he was simply stating the facts as he saw them, and indeed Beldis, the pig, stood there with his usual leer for Melody and his placating smile for Lor'Themar. Narinth however stiffened at his words even as Melody felt her own skin crawling and there was another long and tense silence that followed as Melody felt Lor'Themar's green eyes boring into her own, and she attempted to put all the contempt she felt for him at that moment in every fiber of her being into her return stare without actually altering her impassive facial expression. In that moment, with her skin crawling and her anger pumping, she could have sworn for just that moment that he was going to outcast her, banish her from service, and there was nothing she would have been able to do about it. The Crimson Blade was a secret order and thus there was no official process or procedure for handling issues such as this. Lor'Themar's word was law in these cases, and that was that.

As quickly as it had come the moment passed, the heat of the moment dissipating into the air as quickly as a freshly opened wine bottle, and Lor'Themar turned away without further comment, shifting his attention to Beldis and Lotwil. "Take the gnome to our interrogation chamber so we may extract the information we need from him before magically altering his memory of this incident and returning him to his camp. They will be expecting him back by sundown, after all."

Beldis managed to bend a leg without dropping his burdens and walked away, raking Melody with his eyes one last time before turning to carry out his orders. Lor'Themar followed him out to see to his own ends, leaving Melody and Narinth to consider themselves dismissed. They would be expected to return to whatever public duties they had until recalled for another assignment, and for Narinth that meant returning to her post as Portal Trainer within the Silvermoon Spire. For Melody that meant detached duty since she had no current active duties to attend to, so she would have to report to Alsudar the Bastion for any assignments.

Narinth gave a little sigh as she looked about the room, eying the door and then running a look over room to be certain they were alone, then lowered her voice conspiratorially for Melody's ears alone. "Sometimes of late I question the… direction… to which the Crimson Blade is being aimed…"

Melody nodded, "The Reagent Lord is… overly cautious, I fear. About a great many things…"

Narinth gave a little roll to her shoulders that could have meant anything at all, and headed for the door before stopping and glancing back to Melody, and saying in a conflicting tone that conveyed tentative wording yet firm conviction of intent, "If anything… happened… and new leadership was needed for the Crimson Blade... I believe many feel as we do, and we would follow the best of us that took the lead..."

A level look from Narinth conveyed the meaning behind her words, and then she was gone, heading back to her normal duties. Melody finally allowed herself to relax, her body deflating as she released a huge breath and let her pulse get itself under control. She took a few moments to compose herself and then stepped out of the room. She took a back hallway through Silvermoon Spire and came out in the plaza below without ever crossing through the main reception room, and she took a moment to have a look around. The gentle slim curves of the elven masonry sent the brilliant gold trimmed marble spires into the air, topping them with crimson roofs and banners, and the roadways sported the same décor. A silver trimmed fountain sat in the center of the square and clear cool water spayed up in to the air, creating a sense of peace and tranquility. A couple of cats strolled languidly about their own business, and across the way a child chased a puppy at play. The sun had risen in to the sky, declaring mid-morning, and she reveled in it, turning her face up to the warmth of it, letting herself bask in the post dawn air. The night time had never held much appeal to her, but the dawn… that was the time of day where all was possible.

Melody turned Narinth's words over in her head as she walked across the plaza before Silvermoon Spire heading towards Farstriders Square, considering all possible meanings she may have been attempting to impart. New leadership… everyone feeling the same way… the best of us… could these words be implying what they sounded like? Her tone was tentative, feeling Melody's reaction out, yet her conviction had been clear. She felt someone should take command of the Crimson Blade. Could she be implying that Melody lead? Resulting in another episode like that of Lady Liadrin and the Blood Knights?

Alsudar the Bastion was a tall Blood Elf overlooking Farstriders Square, and although he was technically part of the Crimson Blade, he did not often accept assignments as he oversaw most of the warrior societies of Silvermoon City, and was a large part of Silvermoon's defensive force, a high ranking officer in their standing militia. He was stoic and solid, and did not often speak of very much that did not have to do with the warrior cast, soldiering, duty or honor, and he there were those who said he could he could stare down an infernal, despite his rather obvious handicap of having eyes while an infernal did not. Beside him stood Sarithra, who broke out into a broad smile at the sight of Melody as she came around the corner. Her friend greeted her warmly as she walked up, they traded a friendly hug and Sarithra stepped to the side as Alsudar stepped up and saluted in greeting, fist over his heart. Melody saluted back and spoke to Alsudar first.

"Lord Alsudar, reporting in after completing my work detail for Reagent Lord Lor'Themar Theron."

Alsudar gave a single curt nod. "At ease. Was the hunt good?"

Melody nodded back, once again relaxing her muscles, but still standing ready. She chose her words carefully, both because Sarithra was not part of the Crimson Blade and knew nothing of it as well as for Alsudar's benefit. She did not want to explode on her direct commanding officer. "The hunt was… completed without incident."

Alsudar looked at Melody for several moments before replying. "It is always a shame when a warrior's talents are suppressed by circumstance. It is even more of a shame when the organization that orchestrates those circumstances does not see when they are indirectly causing this."

Melody blinked, unsure what to say. Alsudar had come dangerously close to outright question Lor'Themar's judgment, at least to her ears. Was he one of the ones Narinth had been speaking off…?

Alsudar saluted once more. "We welcome you home, warrior. You have brought honor to Silvermoon and to yourself. The day is yours to reflect. Report to me tomorrow morning for further duties."

Melody saluted back, fist over heart, as Alsudar turned back to his duties, and Sarithra planted herself back in front of Melody. They walked a little ways off to talk, finding a bench near an out of the way planter to converse privately. Sarithra sat quietly at first, a look of consternation on her face where she normally wore a smile for Melody. The two had been friends for a very long time, and it was a little odd to Melody to see her friend looking so troubled. Finally she looked up, green eyes meeting green eyes in an intense stare.

"Whatever happens, I stand with you, Melody."

Melody blinked, startled yet again. "What do you mean, whatever happens?"

Sarithra exhaled in annoyance. "You know what I mean. It's obvious there's something going on, to anyone with half a brain and at least one eye, at any rate. Whatever you're doing for the Reagent Lord with your special trips away is upsetting you, I can tell, and even Alsudar is concerned. I'm not sure of the details, but I just wanted you to know that whatever you decide to do about anything, I support you."

Melody breathed easier, releasing a breath she had not known she had been holding. Sarithra did not know exactly what was going on. Probably because there was actually nothing going on. Nothing officially, anyway. She was right that it was making some people uneasy, though. Alsudar and Narinth's words echoed through her mind, still causing her much thought. She wasn't really sure what she was going to do, if anything. She definitely needed a way out though. She could not continue to serve Lor'Themar Theron. She did not believe in him as a leader, and she did not like his political inaction on behalf of the Sin'Dorei. Perhaps she could think of some way to separate herself from him without causing a riot and still serve the Blood Elves' interest as a people.

"Thank you, Sarithra. I'm not sure what's going to happen, but I am very appreciative of your support. It's good to know I have a friend I can count on."

Sarithra beamed at her, and then suddenly changed the subject. "So! Tell me about Beldis!"

Melody groaned, letting her head fall to the side in annoyance. "What about him?"

Sarithra swatted Melody's arm playfully with the back of her fingers. "You know what about him! Are you still playing hard to get with him?" Mischief sparkled in her eyes.

Melody snorted, her long thin ears laying back slightly with her annoyance. "No. I'm not playing anything with him at all. No games, no leading. Why do people keep thinking I'm trying to lead him on?!"

"Because you keep toying with him, silly!" Sarithra laughed.

"I do not! Men are despicable, and that man in particular is one of the worst!"

Sarithra peered at her friend. "You're saying you wouldn't have him?"

"I would not."

"It can't be out of devotion to another. We're too long lived of a people for that to impede you the way it seems to with humans." Sarithra's tone made it clear exactly what she thought of that nonsense.

"It's not that, it's purely and completely about him and how much I despise him."

Sarithra blinked. "And all men, you said."

Melody paused, then nodded. "Yes."

Sarithra continued to consider Melody. "So you definitely wouldn't… with any man… only…?"

Melody's ears twitched as her annoyance rose. "Yes! Okay?! Yes! Only women! Are you happy now?! What's with the interrogation?!"

Sarithra made a soothing gesture in an attempt to calm her friend. "Peace, _seler_, I meant nothing by it. We'd just never discussed it before. It's not exactly uncommon. Many elves do not consider gender the same hang up that the mortal races do. It's more the limitation that surprised me. I am glad you don't hold the commitment prejudices they do, though. We are far too long lived to tie down like that." She admonished.

She spoke the truth, and while she was touched at her friend's intimately referring to her as 'sister' in the elven tongue, Melody did not see why her friend felt the need to point out the obvious. Elves in general were nearly eternal, so long lived that love to them was not something to confine to one other, but was something to be unrestricted and shared with whomever you felt deserved your affections. All parties involved had a say in the matter of course, and if a dichotomy developed whence one party did not enjoy the company of another, they simply did not interact directly. It was natural for elves to operate in such a way.

Sarithra stood suddenly, a sweeping gesture as she lifted herself neatly and deliberately to her feet. "I must return to my duties. Will you join me later tonight for dinner?"

Melody stood as well, a graceful shift beside Sarithra's more deliberate movement. "Perhaps. I have much on my mind, I may need some time just to consider my standing with certain circumstances."

Sarithra nodded, and the two hugged again in parting as she went back to her position overlooking the plaza. Melody turned and strode away down the streets of Silvermoon, lost in thought. The beautiful marble spires swept passed unnoticed overhead as she walked, trying to consider her position and what, if anything, to do. Lor'Themar was definitely not pleased with her, though why he singled her out versus anyone else was beyond her. It made no sense, and she had no idea how to approach the situation. It had been made clear to her from several sources now that whatever she did, there were those on her side, and she would definitely be grateful for the support, but what was she to do with it? Leading any sort of revolt was simply out of the question. Lor'Themar had done absolutely nothing wrong to publicly warrant such an act, and even if he was a milksop in her mind, he was still the leader of the Sin'Dorei at this point, and she had no desire to change that or wish to see him brought down. Yet it seemed to her as though the Crimson Blade would rather follow someone else in service to their people, and it had now been implied that they would follow her. She didn't particularly think of herself as a leader, but she would be proud to serve the Blood Elves in that capacity, if it was warranted, but again, how could she accomplish that without inciting open rebellion?

Melody trekked aimlessly for quite some time, losing all track of time or distance as she wandered, these thoughts swirling through her mind like mist in a fog as she searched endlessly for options. She was jolted out of her reverie as Beldis suddenly appeared in her path, almost as if by magic, summoned there by the darker magics of a Warlock. He leered down at her as head done earlier, his eyes clinging to her body in various places much like a sticky bramble vines. She felt her skin prickle under his scrutiny, giving her the urge to bathe. Outwardly, however, she gave no sign that anything was amiss, as she usually did, a look of impassiveness carefully arranged on her face as she leveled a cold and considering gaze at him. How long had she been wandering in her contemplative state, paying attention to nothing, letting her feet take her aimlessly around Silvermoon City? An hour? Two? She noted that she was standing just off the roadway in Murder Row, not far from a mailbox on a ledge overlooking the street. She could not see the sun from her vantage point, as the sky here was mostly blocked out by the immense structures of the sweeping buildings. The light in the area was naturally muted anyway, so she could not completely tell if the dimness was the sun light fading in the onset of evening or if the narrow strip of sky simply could not convey the suns' rays from whatever point on the horizon it currently occupied.

Beldis' voice somehow managed to carry a leering tone to match his eyes as he smirked at her in what he obviously thought was a winning smile. It made Melody's skin crawl all the more. "Ah," He issued a dramatic sigh as a statement, his voice not deep but injected with a suave confidence that made him sound ridiculous, at least to her. Maybe it worked on others, she had no idea. "The fair Melody Dawnrunner! I am happy to have this chance to converse with you; I missed my opportunity this morning due to the conflicting paths of our duties!"

She replied in a frosty tone to match her cool gaze. "What do you want, Beldis?" She wondered why everything was such a grand declaration for the man. He worked with Alsudar, but was nothing like the solid warrior.

Beldis raised his hands in a gesture that was clearly supposed to make him look as though he were simply on his innocent way but which instead made him look as though he were on the verge of toppling over from a stiff wind. He took a step toward here tentatively, as though he were trying not to frighten a doe. "Need I a reason to visit a fellow Blade?"

"Watch your tongue!" The capitol was obvious in his statement, and she wanted to slap the stupid out of him. The organization was secret! How could he open his bigoted mouth and spout things he shouldn't in public! Melody glanced around to make sure no one was in earshot before continuing. "My day was granted to me, so if you don't have a reason I would prefer that you leave me alone."

"Relax, Melody my dear!" Another step. "You are such a beautiful woman... far too beautiful to be worrying so!" His eyes raked yet again along her body, and his eyes felt nearly like a physical grope as they traveled around her more than voluptuous curves of her ample chest and well curved waist.

It took nearly all of her will power not to shiver as though she had been doused in a frozen lake, and just as much of an effort to resist the sudden nearly overwhelming urge not to jam her thumbs into his eyes. "You have absolutely no right-"

He cut her off with another step closer. He was within arm's reach now, if just barely, and he did not lower his hands, shifting his posture to one of supposed openness, and she was again struck with the thought of someone attempting to sneak up on a skittish animal. "I was sent with an official directive from the First Reagent; we are all supposed to assemble in Silvermoon Spire."

Melody blinked in surprise, but otherwise made no other outward sign of disconcertion. "All of us?"

Beldis stepped forward again, bringing him right up to Melody, their chests nearly brushing as he leaned his head forward towards hers, and he spoke in a breathy provocative tone. "All of us… but the meeting will be a short one… and after that… I can think of one or two things we could occupy our time with—"

Beldis words turned into a startled yelp as he suddenly found himself beginning to topple backwards, his center of balance overturned as his brain came to grips with the fact that Melody was no longer head level with him, but had crouched with lightning speed, a rope coming into her hand as she pulled one of his feet away from where he'd been leaning forward on it. Lopping the rope around his ankle she uncoiled just as suddenly as she had dropped to the ground, leaping up into the air towards an overhead tree branch of the tree they had been standing under, and before Beldis could fully register what she was doing, let alone mount any sort of resistance, she looped the other end of the rope over the branch and pulled to. Beldis yelped again, much louder this time, as his leg was wrenched clean out from under him and he found himself swinging upside down from the tree branch, his head bare inches from the ground, his hair trailing along beneath him picking up loos twigs and leaves as loose bits of items and coins about his person and in his pockets tinkled and jangled when they fell loose and struck the ground.

"What are you doing?! Release me this instant!" He tried to bend at the waist to lean up and clutch at the rope around his ankle, his free leg swinging wide, adding to his wild tumbling in the air. What an oaf, he couldn't even hold still long enough to free himself. Melody brought the rope down behind him and casually caught his wrists with her hands and tied them behind his back, so that not only was he bound upside down but was secured by his own bulk. Without a word she turned to walk away, ignoring his wordless shouting at first, wondering idly how long it would take the brute to free himself when a word from him reached her ear.

"Why are you so hostile and cold?! I've done nothing but try to win you over!"

Melody spun on her heal and stared at Beldis as he struggled against the rope, bouncing slightly up and down as he swung freely from the limb above, and she walked over to him, leaning down to put her face inches from his which had turned a deepening shade of red as the blood rushed to his head.

"And I have done nothing to encourage your attentions, yet you persist! I do not know what more I can do to make it clear to you that your advances are not wanted!"

This time she did not look back as he continued to yell at her, blocking out his cries to let him down and talk to him more as she made her way back up the roadway towards Silvermoon Spire. She made her way around the fountain and across the heavily carpeted and adorned raised archway that bridged the gap to the entrance way, and finding no one there proceeded back up through the hallways she had traversed hours earlier after her debrief to find the hidden the hidden transport room the Crimson Blade used for moving in and out without notice. As she entered, she found the Reagent Lord standing before nearly every member of the Crimson Blade, Alsudar the Bastion by his side serving as second in command as they faced the line of the operatives of the Blade. He gestured her to the line and she took her place in the row facing them, eyes forward and fixed on a point on the wall. No one was speaking and so she said nothing, merely waited. Nearly ten minutes later Beldis walked in the room, throwing glares in her direction as he stalked across the room to the opposite end of the line and took his place at the other end, bits of foliage still visible stick out amongst the mass of hair he was still attempting vainly to return to some semblance of order.

Once everyone had gathered, Lor'Themar addressed the room as a whole. "I have just received word not an hour ago that are receiving an extremely important visitor. The Banshee Queen of the Forsaken, Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, has made a special request of me, and before we work out the details of her request, she has asked to meet you all."

There was a silence in the room before Alsudar, who was apparently just as surprised by this news as anyone else in the room though he hid it well, turned to Lor'Themar and asked, "… sir?"

It was as much as a detailed request for further information as lengthy question from another person, and Lor'Themar held up a hand to forestall any further comments that may have been forthcoming. "She will be here shortly, and all will be made clear at that time."

Indeed they did not have long to wait. After only a few minutes had passed one of Lor'Themar's personal heralds entered the room and announced in a loud ringing voice, "Announcing the Dark Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, Banshee Queen and Leader of the Forsaken, ruler of Undercity!"

Two Deathwatch Guards shambled through the doors first ahead of a procession of several banshees, their dark leathers and armor plating enameled in the color and symbols of both Undercity and Sylvanas herself and bristling with weapons in stark contrast to the banshees free floating half translucent forms faintly glowing in an other worldly bluish hue, and lastly strode Sylvanas herself, flanked by two Dark Rangers. They were dressed similarly to the Deathwatch Guards, except that they did not bristle with weapons, at least none that were visible though Melody did catch the faint bulges and impressions under sleeves and shirts that spoke of hidden blades, and they wore voluminous dark cloaks with cowls similar to the one Sylvanas herself wore.

The Dark Lady herself was a resplendent glory to behold, even if she conveyed a darkness about her that seemed to permeate the air. The red glow of her eyes and the ends of some of her faded yellow hair protruded from the depths of the dark cowl of her cloak which enveloped most of her form, leaving only the odd patch of undead colored skin or plate of dark armor visible on her torso or arms. Despite her state of undeath she still looked almost exactly like she might have as a Quel'Dorei, retaining all of the beauty and features she had in life as a High Elf, and she absolutely radiated an air of command and coolness that instantly attracted Melody to her that rang even in her tone as she spoke with a ghostly echo in her voice.

"These are your Crimson Blade operatives, Lor'Themar?"

She did not sound impressed, and Melody could not help but feel a slight sting, not to her pride, but at the thought that through whatever set of circumstances something that she was involved with did not measure up to this amazing person's standards.

Lor'Themar nodded at Sylvanas, seemingly unruffled though his voice conveyed a note of dubiousness. "They are. I am still looking in to the possibilities of expanding the group and their purview, but these are the finest I've found so far."

Sylvanas snorted, a noise that coupled with the echo in her voice in such a way as to make it sound like a curtain ripping. "We shall see…" she said in a frosty way, and turned towards one end of the line and strode down to Beldis' end. She stared deep in to Beldis' eyes for one long moment, during which time the man went from a pompous smirk to a somewhat cowed cringe, casting his eyes downwards, seemingly unable to hold the Banshee Queen's gaze. Sylvanas seemed to expect nothing else however and she turned her attention to the next person in their line, staring them hard in the eye for one long moment just as she had with Beldis. Melody did not know the woman's name having not interacted with her before, but the result was the same, and the woman's cheeks colored in an obvious blush as she turned her head to the side, also unable to hold Sylvanas' intensely scrutinizing eye.

As one after another of the men and women in the lineup with her cast their eyes away from Sylvanas' look of intrigue Melody began to wonder if she was really that frightening, or if her gaze held some special power that she was as yet unaware of. She could not help being curious about what was going on and as Sylvanas reached Melody's end of the line and came up to her last, Sylvanas looked straight down into Melody's eyes, the red glow from her face within her cowl seemed to fill her entire vision, and the rest of the world ceased to exist, melting away to nothingness as her blood caught fire. That was the only way she could describe the sensation, the sound of her heartbeat thundering in her ears as drumming in her chest, and she was warm all over, the heat so radiant that she at once felt both intrigued and consumed by this woman as the Dark Lady searched straight through to her very soul, her eyes seeming to draw out through Melody's own every single character building block, quirk or flaw within her and filing them away for future possible usage. Hours passed, decades breezed by, and suddenly the spell seemed to break as Sylvanas turned away, severing their eye contact by heading back to where she had been standing.

Melody felt dizzy, and she put a hand to her head. What had happened? The world had faded out and nothing had existed beyond Sylvanas. She was breathing in quick shallow breaths and her blood was still on fire.

"I suppose one or two of them might be acceptable, Lor'Themar." Sylvanas' ringing echo filled the room suddenly, and all eyes came up, some in panic some in incredulity. Lor'Themar goggled at her.

"Might be? Sylvanas, these are the best warriors I have right now that I can spare without leaving Silvermoon under defended, and though some of them may have a more level head than others, they have all performed admirably in their duty to Silvermoon and—"

Sylvanas cut him off with a raised hand. "Spare me your diatribe, Lor'Themar, I am not interested in hearing it. I have a very specific need and were I not bound by certain other circumstances we might be in a different situation right now. I will certainly use your Crimson Blade for one or two important things in the very near future. I appreciate your agreeing to assist me with them, and I'm certain you would not object to my requisitioning one or two of them for a more broad usage?"

Lor'Themar blinked, clearly not having expected that last request. "More… broad?"

"Yes, in service to Undercity. I may have additional uses for such operatives. I know that was not part of my original request, but it occurs to me I have a few specific uses to which I could apply some of them to. You wouldn't mind, would you?"

That stare seemed to come up again, and this time it was Lor'Themar who wilted beneath Sylvanas' eyes, and he stuttered a bit while turning his face away uncomfortably. "I… ah… no. No, of course not. I'll place the individuals you request on… detached duty under your command, Sylvanas."

"Excellent." Sylvanas said, and without further ado she turned with a sweeping billow to her cloak and headed out of the room, her procession preceding her out as it had on the way in, and she called over her shoulder just before disappearing out the door, "I shall make arrangements for the return requests you made, Lor'Themar. Undercity honors it's deals."

With that, the Banshee Queen was gone, and several of those present seemed visibly relieved, other slightly shaken up. Melody found she could not stop the image of the Dark Lady's eyes from floating in the back of her mind.

"Dismissed!" Lor'Themar called, and with that they all filed out of the room.

* * *

Melody gazed at Sylvanas by the light of the moon beside the ruin of the wall where she had met her death. She was not sure exactly how she felt about where she stood with regard to the recent events that had led up to the present. She had asked Sylvanas related to her how they had gotten where they are now, and Sylvanas had felt the need to start her tale at their first meeting and the events surrounding them. It seemed so far that, beyond being in a position of importance of some sort, her life had been rather… unremarkable.

"So I was… average?" Melody's voice came out with the same other worldly echo that Sylvanas' own had, her glowing blue eyes coming up to meet the red of the Banshee Queen's, and Sylvanas shook her head.

"Nothing about you was average, at any point. Lor'Themar did not recognize what he had in you, yet your peers all valued you, and I recognized the second we met just what sort of potential you held. Let me describe for you what happened next…"


	3. Chapter 3 - Undercity

Authors Note: This story is primarily going to be a Sylvanas/OC adventure/romance, but may include other elements or characters as I write them in. Fair warning, no explicity this chapter, but a few juicy bits to tide anyone over looking forward to that. ^.^ Next chapter... hehe.

Please note: I am ware that there are still many plot holes. I've done it on purpose to lead to future plot twists. If anyone sees them... well good for you. XD If not, relax. Also, I am going to try to stick as close to WoW canon lore as possible, but if I deviate, either it's on purpose, such as certain special abilities I've written in for Sylvanas, or it's an accident, and I am not opposed to being (politely) corrected. Otherwise, I am likely to ignore you and do it again on purpose just to spite you.

Please also note: I do not actually know Thalassian, and any words contained in my chapters that I state ARE Thalassian are actually just Elven translations off of other fantasy sites. Sorry, but I simply couldn't find websites with the Thalassian translations I wanted. Please understand this. Hehe

All content and characters are owned by Blizzard and copyrights are theirs. I'm just a silly fan nerd. Hehe.

* * *

Undercity was like no place Melody had ever seen before. The shambling forms and decaying bodies of the Forsaken themselves lumbering along as they went about their daily lives aside, the architecture and city layout was completely… foreign. Not that the Forsaken had built the majority of Undercity, she knew. Most of the Forsaken alterations had taken place in the form of underground modification and expansion and some new constructs. Many years ago it had had a different name and had been the capital of the Human Kingdoms before being destroyed by the Lich King, Arthas. It wasn't until after the Lich King had slaughtered everyone in the city and razed the castle itself and then abandoned the desecrated ground that it had been available for use much later by the Banshee Queen. Melody had not witnessed these events but knew of them, and she had never been to Undercity before either. And now that she was here, she found it… disquieting. Elves as a people revered natural beauty and the wonders of nature, especially those with magical gifts who harmonized with the natural world, and though she had no magical aptitude herself Melody still felt most at home amongst her peoples' spires and the greenery of mother nature. Undercity was… well, an abomination, a city risen from the grave as surely as any of it's citizens had been. She glanced down at the river of glowing green goo that ran through the city's underground canal network the same way a river might be diverted through for water flow in a human city and gave a little shiver. So unnatural, so disconcerting to her. What was it even for? She had no idea what the purpose of this greenish ooze was.

Melody paused as she was walking along one of the catwalks in the central hub, pondering to herself. The word "abomination" had such a negative connotation to it, and she reflected upon it for a moment. She did not find anything wrong with Undercity in the slightest; it was a thriving nation with a distinct, if different, people and their culture. She had no problems with them in general, only that she was not completely… comfortable here. She would need to visit the trees and spires of her people regularly lest she fall into a longing depression, which luckily was not a problem thanks to the translocation orb that linked the two cities together for easy travel. She resumed picking her way carefully along the path she had been treading. She had been instructed to remain within the city until summoned, yet she had nowhere to actually be, nothing to occupy her time or her mind. She wandered somewhat aimlessly, careful to avoid trodding in the path of the bustling Forsaken. She was not used to being idle and found it not to her liking. She was a warrior, after all, and was in her element when being used to a purpose, the same as any sword might dull and rust with disuse.

Her skin crawled at the back of her neck and she had to resist the urge to rub at it. It was the feeling of eyes watching her, and she took a moment to cast her eyes about to see who it might have been under the guise of checking about herself as if for some personal item or possession that a person might do if they thought they'd forgotten something. There was no one she could see in her immediate vicinity. She got a good look up and down the subterranean passageways near her, the faint glaze of the oozing green gunk shining everywhere, but there was no one nearby. She rolled her shoulders and continued on.

She made her way along until she found the War Quarter and within it found many very busy seeming Forsaken training in various martial practices off in one area. It struck her how she continually thought of the Forsaken as rushing everywhere. They certainly always seemed to her as if they were in a hurry. Despite the cultural differences between the Forsaken and the Sin'Dorei, Melody still felt a familiar feeling as she stepped up to a training area where there were several training dummies set up with a few more senior warriors nearby to oversee the yard. Races may differ, but there was always a familiar atmosphere from one militant group to the next. It was the air of discipline she sensed, and ever warrior knew innately when they were in good company because of this air, and even as odd as it might have looked to any third party observer witnessing a lone Blood Elf woman walking up to a training ground full of Forsaken who might have appeared threatening to most, she found instead a nod of approval from the guards on watch and the training master nearby, and she nodded back in respect. None of them knew who she was or why she was there, but they knew that their Queen had recently invited several of the Sin'Dorei to their city and they could sense her warrior's spirit as well, and for the likes of such militant minds that was all that was needed. Real warriors had that sort of discipline and duty imbedded in their very bones.

Melody stepped up to a training dummy and ran a practiced eye over it. The thing was beaten and worn and had many marks of repair; the marks of a much used and much loved training dummy. Melody unsheathed her sword with the rasp of metal against leather, the blade giving a very faint metallic sound as the tip cleared the scabbard on her back, and took a few swings experimentally. She wasn't necessarily trying to get a workout, she simply had time to kill, but exertion had it's own way of providing a steady rhythmic calm and she soon found herself lost in the exercise. The underground courtyard held no direct sunlight access so the only way she knew how long she'd been at it was owed to a lantern not far off that she could judge the passage of time by the amount of oil it had burned. Sometime in the late afternoon she ceased her practice and turned to exit the practice field, and found one of the guards watching her. He was eying her with an appraising look, as one warrior might appraise the edge of a sword. She returned his gaze levelly, and after moments of silence he spoke in the rasping tones common to the Forsaken.

"You have fine form and a practiced stance. I salute you."

"Thank you." She replied, sliding the sword back in to it's sheath on her back. "Could you tell me where the showers are?"

"Showers…?" The word uttered from his mouth as might a foreign word to someone who did not speak the same language, and Melody could not stop another shiver as the guard glanced over towards the glowing green canal ways that ran through the city. Did they seriously bathe in the slime? Better to think they did not bathe at all. Even if they undead did not really have the same concerns of sweat, they still had to get dirty sometimes, didn't they? Or… did they sweat…?

"Surely you have hygienic facilities of some sort…?" The guard stared at her so long she sighed and rephrased her question. "There's a lake outside, right? Is the water at least clear?"

He nodded and she sketched a shallow curtsey despite not wearing a dress, and retraced her steps back along the green oozing canals and up the ancient stonework catwalks until she reached the elevators that would take her to the surface. There seemed to be no one waiting at the elevators but she had that eerie feeling of being watched again, the skin on the back of her neck prickling just slightly as the elevator door opened. She gave another glance around before walking through the door, boarding the elevator and waiting for the lift to carry her to the surface level, but as before did not spot anyone nearby. The round floor of the lift had spikes fashioned from what looked like bone all around the perimeter and the thing fit in it's tube in such a way that she wondered if the elevator was made as much for defense as for utility, and after a moment the thing began to whisk her towards the surface. The air quality slowly shifted as the lift reached hallways that connected to open air and the door way at the top opened to admit her in to one such hallway. She traversed it until reaching the outside and left the ruins of the surface city behind her. She followed a well worn trail away from Undercity around to the west, and glanced about her surroundings as she walked. Even the sky and trees here seemed muted, somehow less natural than nature had originally made them, and she tried not to think too hard on what was in that green sludge stuff that could cause this sort of effect.

Melody followed the bank until she found a secluded and relatively private spot beneath the edge of an overhang that was not visible from any direct line of sight and sat down. The skin prickled on the back of her neck once more, but she ignored it. She could see no one near by and by this point she had no idea what could be causing it. Sitting down she removed her boots setting them to the side one after the other, then dangled a foot down in to the water. It was cold but not freezing, so she continued disrobing, laying down her sword within easy reach of her small ledge then setting aside first her gauntlets and shoulder pads, following with the rest of her armor. She peeled her pants and shirt off next, laying them down, then shed her undergarments. She pulled everything out evenly on the ground to air, rustled in her pack for a small chunk of purple lotus soap, then lowered herself naked into the chilly water.

Despite the relatively cool water Melody still enjoyed her bath. She had always enjoyed the pure act of bathing herself, reveling in the feeling of becoming clean as the soap sluiced off the gunk and grime of the day. She ran the soap slowly and reverently along her skin, starting with her face and neck, then across her shoulders and arms, down and around her ample breasts, over her smooth stomach and sides, over her bottom and hips, then carefully between her legs, and lastly down her thighs and lower legs. The soap worked it's magic, ridding her of the sweat and grime from her exercise and creating a floating soap film on the waters surface which rippled slowly out from her as she moved in the water washing herself and causing tiny waves.

Finishing lastly with her hair, dipping her head backwards and running soap in it, she concluded her bath by running clean water through her dark red locks to rinse it clean, then lifted herself out of the water and back on to her overhang. She lay out nude on the rock and waited to dry enough to dress, thinking more about her assignment to serve the Banshee Queen. She had been placed under the Dark Lady's command on detached duty from Silvermoon City, Lor'Themar had said "For the foreseeable future." It was possible the Reagent Lord was just as eager to get rid of her as she was to be gone. Yet how could she benefit her people if she was not among them? She had wanted a way out of her situation, but this did not seem the ideal way in which she wanted to remove herself. She mulled this around in her head for nearly half an hour, running it around in circles through her mind as she enjoyed the feel of the wind caressing her bare skin while drying from her bath, the breeze pebbling her skin and hardening her nipples with it's light kisses.

With a small sigh of regret Melody finally realized she had dried enough to dress and stood to don her gear, pulling each piece on one after another until she was again fully clothed and equipped. She glanced longingly at the water one last time before turning to head back to Undercity, wishing she'd had more time to enjoy the water. She turned to leave, and made it only a few steps back up the bank before she passed a tree casting a deep shadow, and her blade came in to her hand so quickly it seemed nearly to have sprung into her hand of it's own accord, clearing the sheath on her back with a very audible ring of metal on leather as she spun around to level the point of the two-handed blade at the shadowy crevice between the tree trunk and a large boulder off to one side. "If you do not wish to die, reveal yourself!" Melody called.

A figure seemed to materialize from nothing as it stepped clear of the shadowy crevice, and as it did so it resolved into the form an elven woman clad in all black and dark gray leathers, a shadow cloak and cowl on her back over top of a dark leather outfit. Or what would have been an elf, were it not the color or pallour of a corpse. Melody blinked in confusion, yet held her blade steady. Aside from the cold deadened bluish hue to her skin, the woman retained all of the physical features and beauty of a Quel'Dorei, the High Elves, and she considered Melody with a calm demeanor.

"I am Dark Ranger Cyndia, and I am here with a message for you from Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, the Banshee Queen."

Her voice held a ghostly echo as if it were coming from another world, and her eyes burned a glowing red from within a dark cowl pulled forward casting a shadow over her face. Melody was uncertain how to react to this so she did not lower her weapon. The woman had been hiding the whole time. She'd known someone was there. Had she watched her bathe, too? "Did you enjoy the show?"

Cyndia smirked, playfully Melody thought, "Perhaps..."

Melody stared at the Dark Ranger. "What are you talking about, a message from Sylvanas? What would the leader of the Forsaken want with a lowly warrior?"

The corner of Cyndia's mouth quirked a shade more, the shadow of a smirk as she locked eyes with Melody and took another step forward. "The Dark Lady has heard of you." She imbued the word with a tone of dark amusement. "She is requesting you specifically by name. You caught her attention and she's had me following you off and on for some time now, and has finally asked me to deliver an invitation for you to meet with her."

Melody finally decided that there was no hostility in the situation, so she lowered her weapon, letting it dangle to her side. The Forsaken were part of the Horde just like the Sin'Dorei were, after all. She was too nervous to sheath it, however. "You've been following me? Impossible, I'd have noticed you."

"Yes." Cyndia sounded amused. "I am certain you would have, as you just did, had I not done so from a distance away. This time you only noticed me because I was practically on top of you. Still impressive that you did, however. This is part of what the Dark Lady has noticed about you." Melody could have sworn those red eyes twinkled in playful amusement. "She would like you to come to the Royal Quarter tonight to take the evening meal with her. Please do not forget."

"Do you have any idea why the Dark Lady wants to see me? I'd thought our assignments would be given to us by…" Melody trailed off, suddenly not sure who she had been expecting. It occurred to her that not only was she unaware of who she was reporting to but also had no idea of the command structure in Undercity. She didn't know who was important and who she could even ask for directions, as the Crimson Blade was a secret organization and she couldn't even say why she was reporting in or give reasons to explain her presence.

Cyndia seemed endlessly amused by Melody's befuddled expression, her red eyes glinting in the fading light of Tristfal Glades as Melody struggled to work things out in her mind. She offered no further explanation, simply watching the thoughts war across her face, but neither did she leave. She seemed to waiting in her boundless entertainment while Melody vainly pondered the situation to hand waiting for the Blood Elf woman to give up and ask for more info, and that's exactly what she ended up doing.

"So… when and where exactly am I expected?" She asked finally, looking the at the Dark Ranger expectantly.

"The Dark Lady will be awaiting your presence in a room off the Royal Quarter in one hour. If you get lost, you can ask any of the Deathwatch Guards in the Royal Quarter for direction. The Dark Lady has let them know to expect you."

Cyndia dipped in an imitation of a courtesy, even spreading her dark cloak a bit as though it were a skirt, and she stepped backwards, back into the shadow of the crevice. As the shadows took her, she seemed to dematerialize and disappeared. Melody took a step forward, for what reason she knew not what, and after several moments staring at the crevice finally sheathed her weapon, returning it to it's place on her back as her brain worked to try to make sense of what had just happened. Sylvanas knew about her? That was ridiculous. Leaders of the Horde did not simply know random fighters in their own ranks, let alone soldiers in the ranks of other leaders. She had wanted a group of operatives, not one specific one, hadn't she? Something was missing here and she needed to know what it was. She would definitely meet Sylvanas, if for no other reason than to get some answers.

Once again Melody backtracked, retracing the same steps she had taken earlier along the path out of the ruins and re-entered Undercity. Taking the lift down was much the same as taking it up had been, just a sudden rush of movement accompanied by a shift in the air quality. Exiting the lift she headed down and around into the centralized hub of Undercity, then followed the crisscrossing walkways down in to the deeper passages and was following the curved walkway by the glowing green canal when a jewelcrafting vendor came in to sight and she stopped, a thought suddenly striking her. She couldn't say why the thought suddenly popped in to her head beyond the fact that the sight may have triggered it when the opportunity of her passing presented itself, but Melody suddenly wondered if she aught to stop and purchase a gift to bring with her. That was the sort of thing one did during some sort of diplomatic function, and that was what she was heading to attend, wasn't it? A diplomatic meeting to represent the Crimson Blade to the Banshee Queen? What had Cyndia said about that?

Fairly certain in her assessment of the situation, Melody walked up to the jewelcrafter and looked over what gems and rings and other finery were available on display. There was every manner of gem on the trays scattered about all the way from simple tigers eye all the way up to rubies and sapphires, both uncut as well as cut and worked, set and unset gems glittering out of their jewelry settings. Amulets, rings, broaches, clasps and more adorned pegboards that had been hung at eye level to be inspected and browsed at the shoppers' convenience, everything glittering and twinkling as it caught and reflected the faint torchlight. Melody felt a little overwhelmed and out of her element. She liked glittering gems as much as the next girl did, but she had never felt the need to go out of her way to look into them or find out anything about them. She had no idea what was good or what was not or why, but she had to pick something. She did not wish to offend the Dark Lady with a sub-standard gift.

Apparently her indecision was plain on her face because the jewelcrafter himself took notice and shambled up to Melody, gesturing broadly at the wares displayed around him. "Beautiful, aren't they?"

Melody nodded. "Yes, beautiful."

"I am Neller Fayne, the master jewelcrafter of Undercity. Is there something in specific I can help you find, my dear?" Neller rasped, rubbing his hands together in the fashion of a nobleman eying a precious acquisition of some sort. He ran his eyes up and down her, but not in the way Beldis did. Neller's eye was only concerned with attempting to assess the value and price range of a potential customer in the fashion of any shopkeeper sizing up a patron.

Melody shook her head, an ever so slight grimace twisting the very corner of her mouth as she tried very hard not to pay attention to the rotting flesh hanging from the man's bones. "I'm not sure, really… I'm looking for a gift for… someone…"

"Ah, someone special?"

The Queen of the Forsaken was special. "Yes."

"Someone close to you?"

That was not accurate either, Melody pondered to herself. "I wouldn't say that, exactly…"

The shopkeeper mistook her hesitant tone and nodded knowingly, if mistakenly. "I understand. Let me suggest then, if I may, something rare to help you impress the… object of your affections." He shambled back behind a counter and leaned down to open a concealed case.

"What? No! That's not it!" Melody followed, more in protest than in a desire to see what he had, passing the glittering displays of gems around her, the wooden cases worn smooth from age. "You misunderstand, I simply—"

Neller cut her off as he stood up holding an extremely beautiful broach, a piece of jewelry so gorgeous it stopped Melody in her tracks. A round setting worked from silver shaped to look like the half-moon with a latticework pattern where shadows and craters would normally be so that the gem set inside and beneath could be seen through it, in which rested a dark glittering purple gemstone. The light of the moon... the Dark Lady… Melody was swept away…

"What is it…?" Melody breathed, the glittering purple gem inside seeming to draw her in, to drink her gaze the way a hot desert sand might absorb water. She could not tear her eyes away from it.

"A Shadowsong Amethyst." Neller told her impressively with a grand sort of gesture, "All the way from the Outlands! They are rare and hard to come by."

"How… how much?"

Neller chuckled, a sound like sandpaper ripping from the rasping undead throat. "I can see how much this would mean to you, so I'll cut you a deal. A hundred and fifty gold and it's yours, my dear."

Melody's pulse quickened and she felt a flush overtake her, her chest constricting in emotion as she looked at the beautiful jewel, a rush of intense feeling flowing through her that she could not identify. The edges of her vision darkened slightly and the world faded at the edges around her as she gazed at it, and she caught the slight look of two red eyes peering in to her soul, a memory superimposing itself over her vision as she stared in wonder at the jewel. She did not even argue or try to haggle. She was so transfixed by the sudden feelings welling up within her that she absently reached in to her coin purse and dug out the coin, placing the requested amount into the jewelcrafter's coin chest as he looked on with a slight surprise in his eye. No doubt he had expected some sort of protest or haggle out of her and had been prepared for it.

"Ah. Thank you, my dear. I hope it suits." He held out the gem to her, but Melody shook her head.

"Can you put it in… something for me? Like a gift case or…?"

Neller nodded, "Of course, of course. I have just the thing." He reached again beneath the counter and retrieved a small jewelry box and pulled the lid open. Inside was a small purple velvet pillow which he placed the broach upon, then snapped the lid shut and handed it to her.

"Thank you very much." Melody sketched another skirtless curtsey and received a bow in return, then turned and continued walking on, holding the case in her hand. Why was she so flushed? She shook he head, trying to clear it as she continued towards the royal quarter. The red dots in her vision cleared and the blackness at the edges of her vision went away mostly, but the world remained faded somewhat, the colors muted as though looking through half-closed eyes. What was going on?

The worn stone walkway curved away from the jewelcrafter and eventually opened up to a turn off in a winding westward direction, heading down a hallway that was lined with Deathwatch Guards that would eventually lead to the Royal Quarter. She turned and headed that way, clutching the small case in one hand, keenly aware of the box's edges against her palm and fingers as she tried not to squeeze it too hard. Each Deathwatch Guard she passed nodded to her in a brief curt fashion, indicating that Cyndia had not been exaggerating when she had said the Dark Lady was expecting her. She followed the curving corridor until she came upon an opening in the wall just a few yards away from the entrance to the Royal Quarter. An opening because it had no door she could see, yet it was flanked by two more of the Deathwatch Guards and there was light spilling out into the hallway from within. Melody stopped before these guards.

"I am Melody Dawnrunner, here to see the Dark Lady as requested."

They nodded and one of them turned to escort her inside, the other nodding to her to follow him in. She did so, keeping just behind the guard as he led her in to a rather spacious room that had been set up with a beautifully finished redwood table and a set of polished candlesticks holding flickering candles on it set for a meal for two. The walls held more candles that helped to cast a muted glow about the room and though the light level was low it was not hard to see, setting a mood of casualness if not open hospitality. There were tapestries along the walls as well, displaying everything from the symbol of the Horde to frieze of Undercity itself and even a few nature motifs. The stone of the walls and floor here was much cleaner and well maintained than that of the rest of Undercity, the sheen of the green goo not present here. A fireplace had been lit on one side of the room, the mantelpiece holding several statuettes that caught the flickering light of the fire below them resulting in a merry twinkle. On a second glance Melody saw that the fireplace was much cleaner than a fireplace normally was, free of the build up of soot that normally indicated long usage, suggesting it was not often utilized. There was a door on each of the two remaining walls, leading she knew not where. And sitting on one side of the table for two sat the Dark Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, Banshee Queen and Leader of the Forsaken.

The guard's voice rang into the room, clear and precise, free of the rasp undeath. "My Queen, may I present your honored guest, Lady Melody Dawnrunner of Silvermoon City."

Sylvanas nodded to the guard and her voice held a commanding tone that issued along with the other worldly echo of it, "Thank you, you may resume your post."

The guard bowed low and Melody stepped out of his way as he passed back out of the door to resume his station outside of it. Melody looked to Sylvanas Windrunner, and those red eyes bore into her green ones, and that feeling of having the depths of her soul analyzed gripped her again. The world did not fade this time, however. Melody was also able to keep her wits about her this time and the tunnel vision did not crowd out the edges of her sight thankfully.

Melody dipped as low as she could, sketching out another curtsey but this time bending knee down as far as she could without toppling over, inclining her head low as well. She opened her mouth to speak, but found her voice choked as she straightened up. For heaven's sake! What was the matter with her?! She tried again and thankfully found her voice this time. "Lady Sylvanas Windrunner. I am honored by your invitation this evening."

Sylvanas nodded and indicated the chair opposite her. "You may have a seat."

The commanding tone behind her echo implied that this was not a request, and Melody took the offered seat, settling herself into the chair as she glanced at the table settings again, this time registering the fact that it was only set for two. She spoke before she thought, something she rarely did.

"Are none of the others coming?"

Sylvanas' face did not alter in the slightest, the same piercing stare issuing forth from deep within her dark cowl, but when she spoke the commanding echo was accompanied this time by the faintest note of amusement. "Others? I had requested only your presence. What did you think this was?"

"I had… thought this was a diplomatic function with my… organization." Melody found herself flustered. Why was she so off balance? She was a warrior with better discipline than this!

The faint note of amusement in Sylvanas' voice increased ever so slightly. "Oh? And what sort of diplomacy would that be? I have already secured the services of your organization."

Melody blinked several times, then shook her head wryly, "I don't know. I'm just a simple warrior and so not very used to visits such as these."

"Just a simple warrior…?" Sylvanas mused.

"I tried though. I… brought you something. A diplomatic gesture…" Why the hell could she not form her thoughts in to words better? That sounded silly even to her ears.

Hoping that her frustration was not showing on her face, Melody set the small jewelry box on the table before Sylvanas, and in a sudden explosion of realization the thought suddenly burst into Melody's head like a firework exploding in the air of just how extremely ridiculous this gift was. She could not believe her own audacity. She had brought a trinket, a simple gem, to a queen. A gift worth the merest pittance compared to the wealth that she must command as a ruler of an entire nation. Not only that, as if all that wasn't bad enough, she'd bought it from the queen's own city! Wouldn't that be like offering someone their own possession?!

Melody didn't know what to do. Her ears lay back nearly against her head in shame and her mind reeled as she searched it desperately for an action to take or some way to recover from this situation, but it traitorously abandoned her in her moment of need and she was left floundering. Even had it not though, it was far too late for any action on her part to stop it, as Sylvanas reached out to take the box more quickly than Melody's rebellious and lagging brain could process anything aside from her need for anything else at all to be happening right now. Aside from melting into the floor or dispersing into a fine mist or anything else besides being where she was right that moment, she could come up with nothing at all. Her hands convulsed reflexively in the air above the table where the box had been moments before as if she could recall the act through sheer fumbling.

The lid of the jewelry box creaked as Sylvanas lifted it back to reveal the broach sitting within. The purple gemstone caught the flickering candle and fire light, glittering faintly in the cozy light. Sylvanas gazed down at it for several very long tortuous moments, Melody's pulse racing faster and faster by the second as she felt her face flushing harder than it ever had before in her entire life. She hated this feeling, she was a warrior, not some brainless halfwit! She was so strong and confident in her daily life that she found it extraordinarily disconcerting to keep finding herself at a loss for words or action like this, especially when she didn't understand the cause.

Finally Sylvanas looked up and peered in to Melody's eyes, still holding the box in her box in her hand. "Do you know why I've invited you here this evening, Ms. Dawnrunner?"

Melody opened her voice to reply but found to her dismay that her voice had once again abandoned her. She shook her head instead, a sharp jerky motion issuing forth instead, sending her dark red hair flipping about wildly. Even her very muscles were betraying her.

"I invited you here," Sylvanas continued, still not moving anything beyond her mouth. "Because you intrigue me."

Melody blinked. "I… what?"

"Not many people in this world have the willpower or presence can hold my gaze. When I meet a person for the first time most especially, since they are not used to it, and my eyes hold an unearthly disconcertion to them."

Not knowing what to say to this, Melody instead slowly withdrew her hands, as she realized she still had them just sort of hanging out there over the table. Sylvanas continued without any input from her.

"I tend to read people, Ms. Dawnrunner." Sylvanas' voice echo was heavy with that ring of command. It had never disappeared, but now it was heavy with it. "A person who treads the line between various worlds becomes accustomed to such an ability, I tread many lines of many worlds. I am very adept at being able to tell what a person is made of and what they are like inside. I look in to a person's eyes and read their heart."

Was that what that had been that had happened to her? And maybe even the after effects of it whenever she thought heavily of Sylvanas? Melody sat up straighter as her flush took on heat at the thought that she had been bewitched possibly by an enchantment, and anger colored her tone just a bit as she spoke, "So you've put some sort of spell on me, is that it? Is that why I can't think straight when you enter my thoughts?!"

Sylvanas blinked in response, "A spell to beguile you? Nothing so crass as that."

The heat left as quickly as it had come and Melody stared at Sylvanas. "Then why...?"

Sylvanas expression did not change, but that note of amusement entered her echoing tone once again. "Not a spell, no. My magic does not have that sort of effect. If you cannot stop thinking about me, perhaps you have some other… ideas… in your mind." Sylvanas' expression did alter at this, a quirk of a smile at one corner of her mouth so imperceptible it might not even have been there. "Regardless, when Lor'Themar Theron introduced me to the operatives of your order, I did not expect any of you to be able to hold my gaze; as I've said, it is very rare. Imagine my surprise then, when one young woman did…"

Sylvanas stared hard at Melody, and Melody again blinked, confused. She thought back to that meeting and poured over the moment, but her memories and vision were so completely taken by Sylvanas herself and her eyes and the feelings that had burst into her mind that she could not recall if she'd looked away or not.

"I… held your gaze…?"

"Yes."

"And that was enough to impress you…"

Sylvanas snorted, an echoing snicker nearly. "It was enough for me to take note of you, and what I found when I gazed into your heart was enough to tell me, not only of your potential, but also of your moral character. Lor'Themar does not realize what he had in you. I've brought you here because I believe you are far too valuable an ally to let rot in some personal trophy collection running silly errands."

Melody watched as Sylvanas finally moved, removing the moon broach from the box and turning it over slowly in her hands. "I will not lie to you or belittle your intelligence by telling you I would not use your talents as well, nor would I refuse to admit that I am more than a little curious about you. What makes Melody Dawnrunner tick…"

"I thought you could tell."

"I cannot read minds." Sylvanas said wryly. "As much use as that talent would be." Sylvanas held the broach out to Melody, and Melody stared back for several moments in confusion before Sylvanas clarified, "The one who gives the gift pins the token, do they not?"

Melody's flush returned in full force as she stood woodenly, her legs locking up as she forced herself to move. This was insane! Sylvanas Windrunner was accepting a token trivial gift from a random borrowed operative?! But wait, didn't she say she wanted to retain her services for herself? That must have been it, this wasn't a diplomatic dinner, it was an interview. Sylvanas was sizing her up, she wanted her to be one of her personal retainers. She'd all but said it. Lor'Themar didn't appreciate her… Melody had never liked Lor'Themar, had never sworn herself to him, only to sever Silvermoon, and everyone knew Sylvanas had lost no love for her former home or people. She was just as interested in the well being as the Sin'Dorei as anyone… wasn't she? If she was, wouldn't she be a better master than Lor'Themar if she could read Melody so well?

Melody reached Sylvanas' side and took the broach in trembling fingers, and bent low to pin it to the breast of Sylvanas' cloak. Their faces were bare inches apart, and as Melody closed the clasp, she gazed down into Sylvanas' cowl, and she could not stop herself. This was so close to the out she'd been needing that she had to act on it, but so strong and powerful was the presence of this glorious creature that Melody could only whisper her request.

Her voice would not have been audible more than a scant foot away. "You are interested in me and my service to Silvermoon?"

Sylvanas whispered back, the echo in her voice turning ghostly "As far as your service and potential is concerned, to Silvermoon and Undercity both." The command in her voice was present even as a whisper. "As to the rest… I am looking forward to finding out." A pause, then Sylvanas added, "Should you choose."

Melody stared down into that cowl. This could all go wrong, could still blow up in her face. If she was wrong... but she wasn't. She couldn't be. She continued, still whispering, "Can you promise me that? Promise you will always allow me to serve our people?"

Sylvanas nodded, "'Our' people. Yes, I can promise that."

Melody knelt without another moment of hesitation, taking to one knee before Sylvanas and, clasping one of the Dark Lady's hands between hers, found suddenly that her jitters had ceased and her voice was completely stable for the moment as she spoke next, loudly and clearly this time, conviction ringing in her voice.

"Dark Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, Banshee Queen and Ruler of the Forsaken. I, Melody Dawnrunner, do hereby swear myself and my service to you. I swear my life to uphold your honor and to serve you in whatever capacity you see fit for the remainder of my living days."

Sylvanas' response was instantaneous, resting her free hand upon Melody's head and speaking in an equally loud clear voice, her echoing command bouncing off the stone walls. "I, Sylvanas Windrunner, Ruler of the Forsaken, knight you the Lady Melody Dawnrunner and accept your pledge of service and fealty. May you uphold your honor through it and in service to myself and our people."

This was mad. Completely insane. This had all happened so quickly, and now there was no going back. As Melody gazed up in to her queen's red eyes though, shining like beacons out of her dark cowl, she realized she did not want undo it if she could. Sylvanas exuded a calm assurance and self confidence, a demeanor of cool calculation and control. The entire world was only ever meant to see the Banshee Queen, would only ever see the Dark Lady. No one was allowed inside that veneer, and it had been that way for a very long time. Yet every time she looked at her, Melody thought she detected something else behind that mask, always on the very outermost edges of perception, always gone the moment it was noticed, flitting away in to the dark recesses of consciousness like a startled fish deeper into the lake. She hadn't realized that had been there until just now, but it felt like something she should chase. Something she needed to chase. Something Sylvanas herself needed her to chase, whether or not the Banshee Queen herself was conscious of it. Her new queen needed her, she realized this now, if not how or why. Even beyond that though, Melody realized she felt a similar feeling, a kindred emotion within herself. Had she herself not spurned the vast majority of the praise or attentions of others? She was the tall proud independent warrior, letting people in very rarely throughout her life. Yet here sat this woman, the queen of the Forsaken no less, who had cracked her outer shell already. Sylvanas had said it was not a spell of her own doing, but was that kind of occurrence not a sort of magic in and of itself? Melody did not know, she had no answers at this point. She had only a feeling, an instinct that was guiding her onwards, telling her that this was the right course for her to follow. A true warrior always knew to follow their instincts. She knew deep inside herself that this was exactly where she needed to be.

Melody bowed her head over Sylvanas' knee and pressed her lips to the Dark Lady's ring, sealing her oath with a kiss. "My Queen."

Sylvanas' voice took on a pleased note in her tone and she gestured upwards. "Rise, my vassal. Your service and fealty are welcome. I am pleased."

Melody stood as she was bidden and sketched another curtsey. Her jitters had completely vanished and she felt completely comfortable despite the flush that still flooded her face. "Honor to serve, my Queen."

"You may serve me now by resuming your seat and providing me with the pleasure of your company for the coming meal." Sylvanas tone was as full of command as ever, yet that slight quirk to the corner of her mouth had flickered and gone again, assuming she was not imagining it, taking any sting out of the command. Sylvanas waved a hand towards the other end of the table, and Melody sat back down. Moments later several Forsaken shambled in carrying trays full of food, and for a wonder it all looked and smelled delicious. There was Hot Wolf Ribs, a large grilled Rockscale Cod, a pile of Barbecued Buzzard Wings, a large Jungle Stew, Candied Sweet Potatoes, Goldthorn Tea and Mullberry Wine to drink, and a delicious looking Cranberry Chutney for desert. As the Forsaken attendants set everything on the table and bowed their way out of the room, Melody blinked at the food and had a sudden thought which jumped unbidden to her lips before she could stop it.

"It all looks delicious, but do you even…" She bit down on the last word, her flush turning a deeper shade. By the gods, would she ever quit blushing?!

Sylvanas finished the word for her in a wry tone. "Eat?" Melody nodded, trying very hard to keep the heat in her cheeks from getting so intense as to cause spontaneous combustion. "The need for food varies from one Forsaken to another. It depends in large part on how far decayed the body was when risen. Our metabolisms work differently than that of a living body that relies solely on food for nourishment, and in some cases a Forsaken may no longer even have a stomach. But yes, I personally can eat. I do not require much or very often, but I can enjoy a meal when I so choose."

"So what do you rely on for nourishment if not food?" Melody had the answer before Sylvanas even opened her mouth, and spoke the answer herself. "Blood?"

Sylvanas nodded. "Life blood from a living creature is the greatest possible nourishment for the undead. This is why the scourge are so feared, because they consume mindlessly and without head of what they are eating."

"I know that. I didn't realize that the Forsaken were…"

The pause in Melody's statement was enough of a gap for Sylvanas to misinterpret her and anger entered the Banshee Queen's face as she spoke in a heated echo, "Were what? Ravenous beasts? We are not the Scourge!"

Melody shook her head, "That's not what I meant! I just didn't know that Forsaken were undead like the Scourge!"

"We are NOT like the scourge!" Sylvanas' echoing anger rang off the walls as she sat up straighter. "We are not mindless beasts!"

"I didn't say you were!" Melody said desperately. "I meant biologically! I didn't know about the blood thing!"

Sylvanas sat quietly for a moment, then nodded slowly. The volume and anger of her ghostly voice fading. "Of course. How could you know? You have probably not had much experience with the undead."

Melody shook her head and said in a sardonic tone, "No, not unless you count the Reagent Lord when he won't listen to my explanations…"

The ghostly laugh was so startling in it's echo as it broke out and bounced against the stone walls that Melody looked about herself startled for the source, and then was equally surprised when she realized it was Sylvanas herself. The Banshee Queen had laughed, had actually thrown back her head and was shaking with mirth. How many people had seen this sight? It struck Melody as a rare and precious thing to be even this close to the Dark Lady, that even her amusement was normally a private thing which she was now sharing in confidence with her.

Sylvanas' looked at Melody, still chuckling. "Well you have nothing to fear of that from me, I can promise you that. As long as you hold to your oath I will always listen to what you have to say."

Melody felt a warm feeling within her chest, enjoying the thought of working under a ruler that would pay attention and not condemn her for trivialities. She leaned forward to take up the serving spoons on the various dishes of their dinner. "What may I serve for you, my queen?"

* * *

The moon shone high over head in the dark night sky, casting it's gentle soothing down upon the ruined wall that was the gravesite of Melody Dawnrunner. Sylvanas gazed down at Melody, red eyes boring in to blue, and Melody understood. She still could not remember any of this, but she could understand now why she felt so comfortable in Sylvanas' presence, why she had so readily gravitated towards her on that hilltop mere hours ago upon waking up in the clutch of undeath, and she could see now why Sylvanas had treated her so cautiously, so tentatively. Oaths such as Sylvanas described that Melody had supposedly taken were extremely binding things, with a power such that lasted only as long as the will of the one who gave it held to it, and only as long as they said they would. They could transcend death, but only if that was how they were meant when given. It was more than the fact that Melody had cracked Sylvanas' shell and worked her way inside the Banshee Queen's private world.

The words Sylvanas had said that Melody had uttered in that oath floated back to her mind. "Sever until death."

Melody returned Sylvanas' gaze, unable to remember if she really had held the Dark Lady's eyes with her own as claimed upon their first meeting, but found she had no problem doing so now. Her voice carried the same other worldly echo that Sylvanas' own had. "I understand now. That's what's got you so worried, isn't it? Serve until death. You said you couldn't let me go, but now I've died. You're afraid that even though you've risen me, you'll lose me anyway. That my oath is no longer binding."

Sylvanas nodded slowly, a look of rare vulnerability painting her features, seeming not only out of place on that particular face but also cast in a supernatural hue under the light of the moon. "As I said… when one rises from the grave… things can change, or be remembered differently… Raising you didn't necessarily mean saving you and keeping you, and if I'd been wrong and raised you anyway, you would have been a rogue element, one of the most powerful Death Knights to ever be created loose upon the world. But I did not care for that, only that I try. I couldn't let you go without trying…"

"You've never been close to anyone else before." Melody noted the silver broach with the Shadowsong Amethyst set inside it still pinned to Sylvanas' cloak.

"I've never let anyone else in, not since what Arthas…" Sylvanas turned her face away, a pained expression crossing her features. "Not since…" She could not continue, and Melody sensed that whatever she was trying to say was something she had not said out loud in a very long time, if at all. The knot of feelings she had been experiencing seemed to boil to the surface and she moved forward, and knelt before Sylvanas. The Dark Lady turned her head back, surprised at the movement, and Melody took one of Sylvanas' hands in hers, just as Sylvanas had described, and spoke in a clear echoing tone.

"Dark Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, Banshee Queen of the Forsaken, I hereby renew my oath of fealty to your service. I vow to serve you in whatever fashion you should require of me, perform whatever duties you should direct me in, for all eternity." Her voice dropped to a whisper, the next words so personal that she could only utter them in a ghostly breeze, "I promise to remain by your side and be there for you forever. For as long as eternity will allow, I am yours."

Melody looked up finally, and saw, to her complete amazement, a look of such rare emotion on Sylvanas' face that she could not tell if she was going to cry or sing with joy, though she was not sure if undead could shed tears or not. Sylvanas shocked her again by pushing back her cowl, actually baring her pale yellow hair and uncovered head to the night sky, and placed a hand on Melody's head. "Lady Melody Dawnrunner, I—"

"Duskrunner."

Sylvanas stopped with a blink. "What?"

"You said before that my name in life was Melody Dawnrunner if I chose to retain it. I choose to retain part of it. From hence forth I shall be known as Melody Duskrunner."

She could not tell what Sylvanas thought of this change, but she resumed what she had been saying having never lowered her hand. "I, Sylvanas Windrunner, do knight thee the Lady Melody Duskrunner, Vassal of the Dark Lady and Champion of Undercity, and name you Knight General of the Dark Rangers." Sylvanas' voice dipped like Melody's had and she finished in an echoing whisper. "And I promise to keep you close to my side, no matter what comes, for all eternity."

Melody surged upwards, flinging her cold arms around Sylvanas' equally cool neck and cloaked shoulders, and pulled her into an embrace. As their lips met, Melody finally disentangled at least one strand of the tangled knot of emotion that had been surging in her chest. She finally knew what she primarily felt for the Dark Lady, and she tried to put as much of that love as she could into their impassioned kiss. She was sure she felt the same in return in the way Sylvanas' lips returned the sentiment, their arms running the length of the others' backs as they held each other close, their tongues working furiously together as their lips conveyed the depth of their emotion to the other.


	4. Chapter 4 - Naxxramus

Authors Note: This story is primarily going to be a Sylvanas/OC adventure/romance, but may include other elements or characters as I write them in. Warning - this chapter contains yuri/lemon built in to the story, so be prepared for a love scene towards the end.

Please note: I am ware that there are still many plot holes. I've done it on purpose to lead to future plot twists. If anyone sees them... well good for you. XD If not, relax. Also, I am going to try to stick as close to WoW canon lore as possible, but if I deviate, either it's on purpose, such as certain special abilities I've written in for Sylvanas, or it's an accident, and I am not opposed to being (politely) corrected. Otherwise, I am likely to ignore you and do it again on purpose just to spite you.

Please also note: I do not actually know Thalassian, and any words contained in my chapters that I state ARE Thalassian are actually just Elven translations off of other fantasy sites. Sorry, but I simply couldn't find websites with the Thalassian translations I wanted. Please understand this. Hehe

All content and characters are owned by Blizzard and copyrights are theirs. I'm just a silly fan nerd. Hehe.

This chapter is fairly lengthy, so apologies for that, but I wanted to get the first love scene in. Hope that excuses it. ^.^

* * *

The two women's tongues vied within their locked lips, their hands clutching at each other's backs, and the embrace went on for several long moments. Melody dimly found it surprising, though perhaps she should not have, just how long two people who did not really need to draw much breath could hold such a passionate kiss. Finally they pulled their heads back, and Sylvanas reached a hand up to stroke the dark red hair of her vassal.

"I'm so glad… so very grateful for you. I don't always know how to put my feelings in to words in situations such as these. Personal things are difficult for me. Yet I am very grateful to have you. I couldn't ever have imagined letting someone in, letting someone get close to me, and now that I have you back I doubly could not fathom anyone else." The raw emotion in Sylvanas' echoing voice was still there, still the rare treat to behold despite the tale she was unraveling for Melody.

Melody leaned down and brushed Sylvanas' lips lightly with hers, a tender caress, her own voice holding the same echo. "Tell me how it happened?"

Sylvanas returned a considering gaze. "How what happened? Us?"

"Yes." Another soft lip brush as Sylvanas continued to stroke her dark red hair. "I still don't remember anything. I have only my feelings to guide me. Tell me more. Tell me how I cracked the shell of the fearsome Banshee Queen."

Sylvanas nodded and returned a lip brush. "Alright. It didn't happen all at once; as I have already described I was already extremely intrigued by you, a young warrior with vast potential and a sharp mind who could hold my intense gaze, not to mention how interesting a woman you were."

Melody rolled her eyes, the blue glow of them shifting with the motion. "Oh please. The way you described it earlier made me sound like I did nothing more than blush and fumble over everything like a brainless ditz."

Sylvanas actually smiled up at her. "I had been watching you, remember? You were just out of your element, that's all. You are a very calm and confident person, and I respect that. I was therefore predisposed to being interested in you already, so as I look back I'm not surprised how things turned out in the moment. We spent many evenings here and there when I had a rare free evening from my royal duties that matched up with whenever you were in Undercity. We grew closer as time went on, though I was not exactly open about it, I believe you could sense it. Then things really clicked a couple of assignments after you began working for me…"

* * *

The giant bat dipped in to a dive as it began it's descent towards the opening to the flight tunnel of Undercity and Melody clutched desperately at the reigns. She hated flying. At least if a horse bucked you off you had only a couple of feet to fall. She tried very hard not to look down at the dizzying drop below her as the bat swooped through the air and finally carried them into the canal flight tunnel. The bat banked around the stone walls and over tiny runnels of the green sludge that was present through out Undercity, even here. She clung hard to the harness and tack of the giant creature as it cornered hard around a final couple of turns before landing with a jolt before the bat handler. It took her a few moments to convince her fingers to loosen from the reigns and she stepped down on unsteady shaky legs to place her feet tentatively on the paved upper catwalk in the central hub of Undercity.

Once squarely grounded and after taking a moment to throw off the jitters, she turned to find a shape had partially formed in the shadows, but not completely. It was still indistinct and fuzzy, half there and all shadowy, but it spoke quietly in the low hollow double tone similar to a banshee's voice.

"Do you have it?"

"Cea? I do." Melody did not speak directly to the shadowy form, but instead leaned towards the rear of the saddle of the giant bat and untied a large tightly wrapped bundle of blankets and lowered it to the ground, then nodded to the Bat Handler that he could take the beast away. As soon as no one was directly paying attention, Melody moved the bundle deep into the shadows next to the wall as casually as one might if they were simply setting down a burden, and as soon as she backed away from it the fuzzy shadow seemed to extend and engulf it, and both forms disappeared.

"Your success is heartening. I shall report below."

No more was said as the fuzzy shadow dissolved once more, and Melody turned to traverse the stone catwalk in the central hub leading down deeper in to the depths of Undercity, the glowing green light of the bright lime ooze in the canal way bouncing off of the stone, seeming to luminesce in her field of vision today. She had noticed during her time in Undercity the past few months that there were days in which it seemed to glow more brightly than others and days in which it seemed a much more muted hue. She wondered idly why that was as she crossed a bridge over the goo and headed in to the long corridor that would stretch to the Royal Quarter. She still didn't even know what the gunk did and was not that keen to find out. Over the course of the past months since she had sworn herself to the service of the Banshee Queen she had come to spend a lot of time in Undercity, when she was back between assignments that was, and had come to think of it as a sort of home away from home. She still made use of the translocation orb occasionally to return to the grand marble spires of Silvermoon City when she felt homesick or when she needed to bask in the feel of her native woodland in Eversong Woods, but for the most part she was content to go about her duties.

Going home always led to it's own set of… awkward situations anyway. Beldis had apparently not given up in his conviction to win her over despite her rather extreme insistence that he desist. The Dark Lady had requested the use of the vast majority of the Crimson Blade, yet the Reagent Lord of Silvermoon City Lor'Themar Theron still retained about a quarter of the group he founded for his own uses until Sylvanas returned them to him. This aside, Beldis still managed to find her and hound her every single time she went home. He'd even once found her in Undercity and had followed her like a lost puppy following it's mother, casting suspicious sidelong looks at every Forsaken they crossed and sneering in disgust at green sludge and other decor around them. She had finally lost him by ducking in to her hidden private rooms the Banshee Queen had granted her when she'd sworn fealty to her when Beldis was not looking.

It turned out that the Royal Quarter actually held a vast array of secret well hidden rooms that Sylvanas personally regulated and granted use or knowledge of only to a select few. The set of rooms she had granted to Melody she said no one else knew of at all, and Melody had found an oddly warm sensation bloom in her at that. Her new liege actually went to surprising lengths to provide for her and keep her happy, but Melody did not get the impression that she was doing it to placate her, but to care for her. A new feeling all together for her, and it didn't stop with the rooms. Sylvanas was quite generous in her desire to keep her happy. Melody found that she had but to ask for almost anything and it would be provided, and that she didn't even have to ask for most things. All of her basic necessities had been provided to her. Clothes, both fine and plain, were kept cleaned and pressed in the wardrobe in her room, a vast variety she had never before owned, with jewelry and accessories to match. Her bed was absolutely massive within her private room made of the softest and finest materials with silken sheets and velvet blankets, a giant four post canopied affair with lace curtains and frills. Sylvanas had even had a mason come in and rework one of the rooms in to a bathing room so she didn't have to go bathe in the lake; the majority of the floor had been sunken and recessed so she could step down in to it as if it was itself a giant tub. There was a drain in the center she could release to let used water sink out into the earth beneath Undercity.

Melody did not head directly to her rooms now however as she needed to report in after returning from her assignment. So she turned instead to continue following the curving corridor all the way to the Royal Quarter and the large room where her queen conducted the day to day business of running a city. She was not entirely sure why Sylvanas went to so much trouble on her behalf. It was extremely flattering, if a bit overwhelming, but she couldn't pin down the why of it. Her queen seemed to derive a perverse pleasure in making her fidget over these things; Melody had never been a noble and now that Sylvanas had knighted her she found that the lavish lifestyle of being a lady was not only new to her but a bit excessive in some ways, and Sylvanas seemed to enjoy dangling these luxuries over her as one might dangle a string over a cat. Melody felt toyed with on occasion, but never negatively. The attention was… quite enjoyable, actually… but she still wasn't sure how or why.

The Dark Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, Banshee Queen and ruler of the Forsaken, stood atop her dais in the center of the Royal Quarter, resplendent in her black cowl and cloak and dark plated armored half breastplate and leggings, conducting her usual business. A line of officials and delegates and a host of other such dignitaries waited for an audience with her stretched along the wall. Her blue hued skin tinged with undeath did nothing to detract from her natural beauty of her High Elven heritage as she had been in life. Melody walked passed each and every one of them and traversed the circumference of the dais to take up a position in the back of the room a short distance behind her queen. She made no move to announce herself to Sylvanas or get her attention; she knew her queen had seen her come in and would get to her when she could, and Melody was content to wait.

There was a slight stirring in the shadows beside her which resolved in to the form of Dark Ranger Cyndia. The undead elven woman was wearing her usual dark leathers and black hooded cloak which, as with Sylvanas herself, did nothing what so ever to hide her perfect elven features and natural beauty which she had retained despite also bearing the curse of undeath, the very image of the order made in Sylvanas' image. Her dark red eyes glowed over the smirk plastered over her face.

"Welcome home, Lady Melody Dawnrunner." Cyndia's ghostly voice echoed as she bent a slight leg, curtseying using her cloak as a dress substitute to spread, her eyes twinkling in amusement.

Melody sighed, "Must you do that, Cyndia? You know it makes me uncomfortable."

"I know, which is why it gives me so much amusement. Besides, our queen has knighted you. You are nobility now, and you should get used to it."

"I may have to endure it, but I doubt I will ever get used to it." Melody grumbled. "I am a simple warrior."

Cyndia laughed, the echo making it ring on the stonework nearby. "A simple warrior? That's rich. There's nothing simple about you. I've seen you fight, you are far more advanced and fierce than the vast majority of those who would claim to be your peers, and even beyond your fighting prowess, you've caught the attentions of our queen. It takes a very rare and special person to do that."

"What do you mean?"

"About your fighting abilities? Why do you think the Dark Lady has been giving you assignments as if you were one of us Dark Rangers? Normally she relies on us, and occasionally the banshees. For all intents and purposes you are one of us now, if not officially a Dark Ranger"

Melody shook her head. "No, I mean what you said about her attentions."

Cyndia smirked broadly, and glanced at Sylvanas' back. "Oh come now, you cannot tell me you have not felt her attention."

"Felt… huh?" Melody was very confused. "You mean about the way she provides for me? I feel toyed with regularly, but I was figuring she was providing me with the comforts she feels necessary to the living. I doubt undead need such things."

"Hmmm… perhaps you really do not see it yet…" Cyndia mused, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Perhaps the Dark Lady herself does not either…"

Melody was beginning to feel annoyed. "What are you talking about? You're not making any sense."

Cyndia made a soothing gesture with one hand. "Peace, _eshe_. I meant no insult. I have simply observed something that no one else has yet it seems. Our queen is a very private person. She has to be, it's the nature of a ruler bout double so for the Dark Lady. Only those that know her best can judge anything by her, and I happen to know for a fact that she has not turned her attentions towards anyone since she was Ranger General of Silvermoon."

"Ranger General….?" So caught up was she that Melody completely missed that Cyndia called her 'my close friend' in the elven tongue. An intimate affection between two who had gotten to know each other over the past few months as trusted allies and companions. They had worked together on several assignments by now, after all. She had worked with many of the other Dark Rangers too, and got on well with the elite undead elven women.

"Her title when she was alive, before Arthas ravaged the city. But it is not my place to speak of such things. If you would like to know more about that, you will have to ask her."

Melody nodded thoughtfully, and Cyndia fell quiet at this point though she continued to watch Melody out of the corner of her eye. What was in the Dark Ranger's mind? What was she talking about, the Dark Lady's affections? Was there some reason that being provided for as a valued vassal was odd? It was true that as the months had passed Sylvanas had increased the time she spent with in Melody's company and the two women had grown accustomed to spending the evenings together talking, but nothing over serious has been said any of them since their first shared meal together. At first it had been once or twice a week that Sylvanas would show up in Melody's rooms or send for Melody to visit hers, then that turned in to three times a week, then four, then eventually it was every night. They simply enjoyed each others' company. Well, Melody enjoyed Sylvanas' company, and even missed it when absent, hurrying back from her assignments as fast as she could eager to report her success to please her queen. She did not know for sure if Sylvanas equally enjoyed her company, but she presumed that to be the case else she thought the Dark Lady would stop favoring her with visits. Sylvanas was not exactly open about what she was thinking or feeling most of the time, that cold demeanor of command being present almost always, but Melody nearly always felt as though there was more just beneath the surface, and she would continue as she was as long as she sensed it there. She could make neither heads nor tails of Cyndia's words, though she could not refute the undeniable sense of warmth and endearment she felt every time she thought about or looked at her queen. They waited in silence as the evening stretched and Sylvanas slowly got through all of her business. Finally there were no further matters that needed the Banshee Queen's attention, and after the Royal Quarter had emptied of all but a few Deathwatch Guards, Sylvanas finally turned around to two women waiting patiently behind her.

"Come to me, my vassals. I am eager to hear what you have to report to me." Sylvanas' banshee voice echoed in it's other worldly fashion as it bid them step forward, and both living and undead elven woman moved to their queen's side.

Cyndia spoke first, answering Sylvanas' echoing voice with her own. "My Queen." She gave a much deeper curtsey using her cloak to Sylvanas than she had given to Melody, which was only appropriate. "I am pleased report the Dark Rangers have all met and agreed about the Lady Melody."

"Excellent." Sylvanas all but hissed as she looked to the warrior, her red eyes boring in to Melody's green ones.

Melody looked from one undead elf to the other, then back again. "What did the Dark Rangers agree about me?"

"You are to be considered affiliated with them." Sylvanas explained. "You do not bear the curse of undeath as they do, and so cannot truly be one of them, but you are my vassal and they all like you well enough. You get on and your duties take you in similar veins in your service to me. So you will be given the rank of Dark Ranger, even if in name only, and allowed to serve as they do."

"We had to all agree you see, since we are selective of whom we let join, even to those who are undead as we are." Cyndia elaborated for Melody's benefit. "It is a closed order, and would be even if we were not in the service of the Dark Lady."

"I see. I am honored, my queen, Lady Cyndia." Melody sketched a skirtless curtsey to each, as she was wearing neither a dress nor a cloak to spread as she bent knee. Both undead elven women nodded, twin sets of red points in their deep cowls glinting at her, Sylvanas stern and commanding as always but with an ever so faint air of being pleased about her that Melody could not pin down to anything in particular, Cyndia with that glint of mischief in her eye.

"Thank you Cyndia. Melody will no doubt wish to express her gratitude to each of the Dark Rangers personally, but I will require her attention for another assignment almost immediately, so it may be some time yet before she has the chance."

"Of course, my queen."

"You are dismissed, Cyndia."

Bending knee once more, Cyndia spread her cloak then faded in to the shadows. Melody could only keep track of her movements for a brief moment or two before she faded completely and found herself alone with Sylvanas. She faced her queen, looking deep into her cowl, and her heart leapt as Sylvanas spoke to her.

"You have success to report, Melody?"

"I do, my queen. I was able to track the location of the last body and return with it. Dark Ranger Cea was waiting when I landed and took it below."

"Excellent!" Sylvanas' mask nearly cracked as the barest corner of her lip twitched for the barest moment as if it were going to quirk in to a smile before resuming it's normal curve. The Dark Lady was in full force, the sight of some goal within her sight. "That was the last one. Now I can proceed to the second stage of the plan."

"May I help, my queen?

"Yes, you may absolutely help. As a reward for your service, I shall take you with me, for I personally will be going to complete the final stage." Sylvanas eyed Melody intently, her gaze boring in to the warrior's own as it blazed with fervor. "This will be a great night for us! Can you be ready to depart in two hours?"

"Yes, my queen. I need only stop by my rooms for a change of clothing and a bath and I will be ready."

Sylvanas did actually smirk this time, a rare treat indeed but one that Melody had been receiving more frequently in the past few weeks. She was still dazed whenever she thought of how this glorious creature had accepted her. It had been months but it still seemed so fresh, so recent and almost surreal. At least the cloudy vision had stopped. She still couldn't control her pulse racing or her face flushing at times though.

"You really do love that bathing room, don't you?"

"I do." Melody glanced around to make sure no one was within ear shot, then lowered her voice for Sylvanas' ears alone as she opened up a little to her. "I love the water and I love the feel of becoming clean. That device you commissioned for me is one of the most amazing devices I've ever seen. I still can't thank you enough for it."

Sylvanas echoing voice took on a fond amusement. "I am pleased you liked it. I told you when you swore yourself to my service I would take care of you, and it is the least I can do."

"You do me great honor, my queen."

"The honor is deserved, my vassal. Now, go enjoy yourself for the next two hours, then meet me outside of the War Quarter."

"Would you care too—" The words stuck in her throat. She'd spoken before she thought, the heat suddenly rushed so hard to her cheeks she felt she could have risen the light level in the room. She was a fool! Had she really been about to invite Sylvanas Windrunner to her bathing room?! Fool! All she had been thinking was that she had been looking forward to spending an evening with Sylvanas when she returned from her assignment as they had been doing the last few months, she hadn't stopped to think of what that activity would entail for this evening if she was readying to depart again. Light blinded, cursed fool!

Several very long and very pregnant moments passed as Sylvanas stared holes through Melody's skull. Or perhaps those holes were forming all on their own, melted clean through by the heat that was pouring through her face. To her shock however when Sylvanas spoke, that ever so faint note of amusement was still present. "Would I care to… join you? Was that what you were going to say?"

Melody was familiar with the legends of the Titans and their shaping of the world of Azeroth, the tales about their awesome power and heavenly strength of body and will. She did not know exactly what those beings were capable of doing, but she imagined in that moment that the sheer force with which they exerted to shape the earth itself was about equivalent to what it took to force her head to duck in the tiniest barest nod in response to her queen's question. Blasted fool!

The Dark Lady stepped in closer to Melody, the hood of her cowl brushing the top of the warrior's red hair. She was not that much taller than Melody, but did have a few inches on her. "I think I will have to pass this time, unfortunately."

Melody's head whipped up, and she was fairly certain she'd left her chin on her chest when she did with how much she felt it gaping in astonishment at the now outright humor in Sylvanas' echoing voice. "Un- unfor-?"

Sylvanas was smirking! She was smirking at her! "I have preparations to make, so I do not have time right now." She stepped closer still, their faces now so close that Melody could clearly see Sylvanas' face within her hood despite the low light levels, their lips bare inches apart. "May I take a rain check for a later time?"

Melody had never in her life let out anything that could have resembled a high pitched yelp or noise of surprise, but the squeak she let out this time could be taken down as a first as her voice betrayed her with a very high pitched "Yes my queen!"

Sylvanas brushed a strand of hair from Melody's face with a fingertip, her mouth still quirked. "You are so much fun to toy with. The more so because I am well aware that no one else gets these reactions out of you, do they."

It was not a question, but her voice cracked as she responded anyway, "N-n-no, my queen... I'd have strung anyone else up..."

Sylvanas gave a very short snicker as she turned away, leaving Melody standing there to gasp audibly as Sylvanas strode off, calling over her shoulder "Go, my proud warrior, see to your business and meet me in two hours." Then she was gone, and Melody found she needed a moment to catch her breath as she walked dazedly in the opposite direction.

The hidden rooms within the Royal Quarter in Undercity which Sylvanas had given to her were blessedly in the opposite direction from which the Banshee Queen had strode away, part of a networked warren of secret hallways which she kept secret from all but those she wished to know of them, and Melody turned to retreat to the haven of those rooms. The doors to each section of rooms were hidden within the very stonework of the walls and there was even a powerful illusion enchantment upon them which caused the eyes of any observers to simply slide passed them if they were not supposed to know they were there, completely missing anyone coming or going from them. She could not believe she had been such a fool! Where had those words come from? Why did she continue to lose her brain power every time she was around Sylvanas? It made absolutely no sense what so ever! She felt toyed with and as though her emotions were being pulled in a dozen directions at once, but wasn't the Dark Lady's fault. She actually quite enjoyed the toying game…

More frustrated than embarrassed now, Melody stomped in to the large outer guest hall to her room which doubled as both dining area and den. A large fireplace on one wall kept alight and popping merrily by an everlasting fire enchantment topped by a beautiful mantelpiece and surrounded by several luxurious armchairs and plush throw pillows. Another wall held several large pine book cases with various recreational literature lining their shelves. A large polished and gilded table stood in the center off the floor off to the opposite end of the room with one largish lamp centered atop it to cast light on that side of the room. The remaining wall opposite held a few tapestries and a door off to one end that led back further in to her rooms, and it was through this door which she now stormed. It led in to a hallway which stretched just far back enough to reveal two doors, the far end one leading to her bed chamber, and the closer one into her bathing room, and it was through this one which she went.

The floor of the bathing chamber right in front of the door was several feet wide and long with a large alcove carved in to the stone of the wall with shelf space for personal effects next to the door and an armor stand for hanging equipment or clothing. The entire rest of the floor was sunken down several feet lower than the area around the door, the forward half about two feet lower and the farthest half of the chamber closer to four feet with a couple of carved stone steps leading down in to it each section. The lowermost section had a drain in it that could be opened with a lever to let the old dirty water out in to the earth when she was finished, as the stonework was so cleverly fit together and so intricate that it was water tight. The room was not large, but was wide enough she could lay down on the center of the middle ledge and still have several feet of clearance on all sides. The jewel of the entire room, however, was mounted on the wall just passed the ledge she was on.

Melody began wrenching the buckles of the straps holding her armor on free with more vigor than strictly necessary, pulling and tugging angrily as she freed herself from the metal plates, slamming them down on the armor stand with ringing clangs as she hung her gear on it. Once free of the protective metal she dumped her travel pack unceremoniously on the floor with a thud next to the stand, followed by her boots as she kicked them off one after the other, then began to peel off her skin tight clothing a piece at a time, her shirt coming over her head then her tight pants next, followed lastly by her underwear. She draped these over top of her armor, then stepped down in to the lower section of the floor.

Walking over to the side of the wall, she reached up to the object hung on it with a delicate hand, her anger at her own foolishness fading as she gazed at it's beauty. It was a dragon head worked from solid gold with small rubies set along it's head, ears, snout, and at the base of it's head spines as if they were scales. It was about the size of a helmet and it's mouth was open in a roar. Two of the head spines were not gold but cut gems, one a dark amethyst and one a blood ruby, different in hue from the other darker rubies. The eyes of the dragon at first appeared to be glowing colors matching the gem spines, but upon closer inspection were in fact globes of magical energy, cast within the eye sockets and set with a permanency charm covered over with an iris-shaped golden slat to make up the dragon's eyes. They were Aqueus Globes, capable of creating water. The purple one created cold water, and the red one created scalding hot water. The corresponding gem spines on top of it's head were actually levers, and Melody reached up to take hold of the dark ruby spine and tilted it, then then did the same with the amethyst spine, tilting it about half as much as the ruby spine. This controlled how much hot water versus how much cold each globe generated, and a thick stream of nice hot (but not scalding) water came gushing forth from the dragon's roaring maw.

She would have loved to have taken a nice long relaxing soak but time did not really permit it right now, so with a heavy sigh of regret Melody moved to the lower area and opened the drain plug so the water would not fill the basin, and then returned to the dragon gushing it's water. It was much the same as standing beneath a very small waterfall, and despite the fact that she did not have time to enjoy a soak in the basin she still luxuriated in the feel of the warm water caressing her naked flesh as she stood beneath the stream. A sliver meshing hung on the wall near by the dragon head holding various types of soaps and creams, and she selected her favorite purple lotus soap and proceeded to clean herself, running the bar of soap over her arms and legs, slowly sluicing the grime of her recent travels from herself, then ran the bar across her stomach and then over her amble breasts, then lastly down into the valley and sensitive folds between her legs, leaving little pebbles of purple soap bubbles all over her skin. She ran some of the soap through her dark red hair to clean it out as well, leaning her head backwards into the gushing flow briefly to let the water carry the soap out of it, She then leaned in to the water stream and washed it all away, standing with her head thrown back and her eyes closed as she was rinsed clean, her ears bobbing in her pleasure as she stood in the pure water.

All too soon her time under the streaming water was finished however, and with a sigh of regret she returned her soap to the silver meshing and once the last of the soapy bubbles had disappeared down the drain she returned the gem spines on the dragon's head to their starting positions, cutting off the flow of the water as she walked back up the steps to her clothing. She had several white and fluffy towels in the stone alcove and she took one, toweling her bare skin dry and enjoying the feel of the extremely soft fabric, and then wrung her hair out over the side in to the basin before toweling her head as dry as she could get it. Finally, she wrapped her old clothes into the towel, and placed them in to a basket beside the door. One of Sylvanas' trusted servants that she had granted access too would come through to gather the dirty things and have them laundered and returned to her. Then she grabbed her travel pack and armor and left her bathing room.

Thankfully enough there was a plush carpet on the floor and Melody was quite thankful for the protection it provided to her bare feet from the cold stone as she padded down the short hallway to her room. Her bedroom was actually quite a simple affair, with the giant lacy canopied bed in the corner and solid wardroom to the side. There was yet another armor rack next to the wardrobe and she set her burden upon it and opened the wardrobe. There was all manner of clothing in here, nearly all of it given to her by the Dark Lady, Silken finery of dresses and robes for casual wear and shirts and trousers to work in. She pulled on a fresh set of underwear and then pulled a simple yet silken t-shirt and short pants over herself, situating the snug form fitting cloth about her curves so she was comfortable, then dug in the back of the wardrobe for a small pouch containing a tin of oil and a well used rag. Normally when she polished her armor she took her time about it, a task to be done with reverence and care. A warrior's armor was as much a reflection of themselves as was their blade, and should always receive the best of care. Tonight however she did not have the time to spare which she normally spent on the task, and so she settled for making sure that she got all the smudges and dirt off and made it shine as much as possible. Replacing the tin and the rag in their pouch in the bottom of the wardrobe, she went about buckling her plating back on. She would have loved to have relaxed this first evening back from her last long assignment, but with time constraining her it was back in to her armor to prepare for yet another trip. So she selected an extra set of silken blouse and trousers and added them to her already well prepared and used travel pack and then left her rooms completely.

The act of cleaning herself and her armor and dressing herself had taken the better part of an hour and she still needed about half of the second hour to walk to the designated meeting point, so she had a little bit of time as she headed through Undercity. A light spiced bread did for a snack bought from a vendor on her way through the central hub as she headed towards the lifts that would take her out of Undercity and up to the surface. The spiked platform rose her into the air and her sensitive Sin'Dorei ears twitched at the change in pressure even as her nose appreciated the change in air quality, though she was enough used to both by now that she barely noticed either occurrence. She headed out of the ruins of the ancient city on the surface that Undercity was built beneath and headed down the road that curved around the outside of the ruins, and though she was nearly a quarter of an hour early she found that Sylvanas was already there and waiting for her.

Melody stepped off the path and followed Sylvanas at her gesture and the two women walked around behind a copse of trees for a little cover, and Melody saw that her queen had a mount prepared for their journey, and she froze uncomfortably, eying the beast.

The wind rider looked up at their approach, sniffing the air curiously as it recognized friendly scents. Melody clutched the straps of her travel back tight enough that her hands cramped, but she didn't notice in her anxiety, her thin elven ears laying back with her anxiety. She refused to allow it to enter her voice though. "We're… flying somewhere, my queen?"

Sylvanas nodded, "Yes, it's the fastest way to catch our target since it's on the move."

"On the move? What are we chasing?"

"A necropolis called Naxxramus. It's headed north as the Scourge is preparing it's forces. My sources say it has been moved from where it used to be positioned over the far Eastern Plaguelands. Our sisters' souls are being used as part of the Scourge army held within the necropolis and I intend to free them and restore them to their bodies as was done for myself and my other Dark Rangers."

The anger in Sylvanas' echoing voice caused quite the intimidating scene when combined with her blazing red eyes, but Melody felt no fear. Despite all of her mixed emotions she found she still wanted nothing more than to serve the Dark Lady in her cause of looking after Undercity and Silvermoon. So she nodded and glanced around. "Is there a wind rider for me to follow you on…?"

Sylvanas shook her head, "There is enough room for both of us on this one. I don't want to present two targets, so we'll take the one."

Melody moved forward and carefully put one leg over the rear portion of the saddle, settling herself in behind Sylvanas, and was just beginning to notice just how close to her queen she was right that moment and feeling those confusing feelings come back when Sylvanas suddenly gave a tug to the reigns and the wind rider launched itself skyward. Melody clamped her jaw down hard to keep from crying out but could not stop herself from flinging her arms around Sylvanas' waist as the wind rider banked hard to the north as it arched into the sky. She held tight to her waist for several long moments before suddenly realizing what she was doing and loosening her arms to pull back.

"I'm sorry, my queen, I didn't mean—"

"Oh please." She felt hands grip her retreating wrists and put them back in to place. "It's obvious you dislike flying, and I don't want you to fall. And I do not require much breath, so feel free to squeeze as hard as you need."

Melody could not see Sylvanas' face but she could hear that ever elusive note of amusement and whatever that undefinable emotion as she kept not quite catching come through in her echoing voice, so she did as she was told and held on. The skin of Sylvanas' exposed midriff was cool to the touch, her undead skin not able to really hold much heat, but her abs were well toned regardless, and Melody could feel the muscle beneath the taught skin. She may have been undead, but she had the body of a warrior, and despite herself Melody began to feel her own responding in ways she was not entirely ready to think about.

Melody didn't have much time to think about such things anyway as the flight was very distracting for her. They were very high off the ground and the air currents kept buffeting at the wind rider, causing the beast to shift or flap it's wings or otherwise alter it's trajectory, and every time it did caused Melody to renew her grip on Sylvanas. She tried hard to look anywhere but down but there was not a lot to look at up here in the sky. The flight seemed to stretch on for hours, and she was not sure how long it really took. They took a zig zag approach as they flew over the landscape, Sylvanas guiding the wind rider in broad sweeps of the sky as she looked for the necropolis they were chasing, and just as they were getting far enough north as to hit open sea water they found it, floating off over the ocean.

"There it is. Are you ready?" The Banshee Queen was in full command now, with their target in sight.

"I'm ready."

"I will be bringing us up from underneath, and we will search for the souls of our sisters. I will need you to help me look for any sign of banshees."

"I understand."

"Good girl."

Melody felt a rush of pleasure at that, a pure unbridled joy that she could not explain at Sylvanas saying something so intimate to her like that. She basked in the glow of this feeling for the several long moments it took for her queen to guide the wind runner up to the underside of the floating necropolis but no longer than that, for a moment later they had landed within Naxxramus.

The ledge the wind rider stopped on was little more than a balcony for viewing the landscape below, a balcony made of dark stone and bone. Sylvanas turned the wind rider and made a gesture, saying "Fly home." and the beast took off to return to it's roost.

"We won't need it to leave?" Melody asked curiously.

"We will not, I have other plans. Come." And they snuck inside being as silent as possible, Melody drawing her sword with as little noise as she could manage. The room they entered looked to be made of a similar dark stone material as that of the ledge outside, though the floor and walls varied from blueish to greenish hues that spoke of the Scourge. There were bones and torture implements everywhere, tables and chairs covered in blood and old used body parts. Melody had never been inside a necropolis before, but suddenly wondered exactly what sort of place this Naxxramus was and what went on here. It was horrific, and she had a sudden rush of a desire to destroy the place.

"Stay close," Sylvanas whispered, the ghostly tones in her voice pitched for her ears alone. "We don't want to be separated in this place."

Melody nodded in response and stayed close on Sylvanas' heals as they moved silently through the hallways. The exited the hallway they entered was lined with more of the green sludge she had seen before in Undercity, but this stuff glowed brightly, a lime green glow so intense that it created all the light they needed to see clearly while casting a greenish light over everything. A few green ooze creatures moved about within the liquid, but none seemed interested as the two women walked along the narrow walkway between the trenches of green gunk, or at least none stirred. The next room they came across held more experimentation tables but rather than blood these were covered in alchemical equipment. Beakers and bottles and flasks everywhere, and two giant glass globes mounted to the walls holding the plague serum inside. There was no sign of anything moving though, and they continued on.

"Why isn't there anyone or anything in sight? I would think an enemy fortress would have enemies within." Melody whispered.

"The Scourge is in the process of reorganizing their army," Sylvanas replied quietly, "They have not garrisoned this necropolis fully as yet, and so have not staffed it completely. Rest assured, however, there are dangers here. I can feel… something…"

Her gaze swept the hallway as they continued on, seeming to see through the walls towards something beyond. They checked room after horrifying room, moving from one bone encrusted area to another trying not to step in the green plague liquid that seemed to be everywhere, until finally they came upon a large open chamber that held what they were after. This chamber was a combination of alchemical experimentation equipment and the horrifying torture tables they passed in the first room. It appeared that normally whatever was done in this room was terrible and large and nothing they wanted to encounter, but for the moment it seemed relatively clear. Beyond that however, off in one corner of the room near a table laden heavily glass flasks and jars, floated the inert forms of four banshees.

Sylvanas immediately moved up to the banshees, her voice drifting back over her shoulder, "Here they are!"

"They look dead," Melody thought aloud.

"They are, technically, but I know what you mean, and no they are still with us." Sylvanas set down a bag she produced from within her cloak and began to sort through it.

Ordinarily a banshee's body was a translucent swirling of a faded blue ethereal energy. They were solid to the touch but could pass through solid objects at will. They shared many similar qualities to ghosts and other spirits, yet their minds were intact and their will was whole. These four banshees were frozen in place, their translucent energies frozen and unmoving, coalescent energies not swirling. Their eyes were closed and their mouths hung agape in a silent scream as they hung motionless in the air, suspended in the corner of the room.

"What has happened to them?" Melody breathed, as half afraid that making too sudden a motion or loud a noise would disturb the floating figures.

Sylvanas' echo took on a quality of disgust as she nearly growled, "I do not know for sure. I think one of the liches may have been experimenting on their vocal qualities, possibly attempting to harness the banshee wail." She rummaged in a pouch at her waist and retrieved four small purple soulstones,

"What are we going to do?"

"I am going to trap their souls within these soulstones." Sylvanas explained as she placed one of each of the purple orbs directly beneath each banshee. "We have recovered their bodies already with your expert help, and once we have their souls within these orbs we can take them back to Undercity and I can use my magics to restore their souls to their corpses and reanimate them as was done for me, as I have done for the other Dark Rangers."

Melody watched as her queen set about her task, lining each orb up dead center and then withdrawing a small cone which she explained was a special type of incense from her pouch next, lighting it and placing it upon the floor. "This incense has no effect on the living, but is a potent guide in spiritual rituals. It will help guide their souls to the orbs and let them know it is safe to hide within."

"Can I help, my queen?"

Sylvanas shook her head. "Not with the ritual itself, I must concentrate for that. If you could keep watch for me, that would be helpful."

The echo in Sylvanas' voice carried a note of… pride? Was she pleased with Melody's readiness to help? She didn't know, but as Sylvanas raised her arms over her head and closed her eyes to begin the ritual, she wanted only for the Dark Lady to succeed in her mission.

Melody paced about the room while Sylvanas began her ritual, a dark circle of light forming around her hands over her head as she whispered her incantations, the smoke from the incense wafting up to create a haze around the already misty forms of the inert banshees. Melody first checked out the door they had come through as she circled the room to be sure nothing was coming up on their back trail. Those oozes could have moved at any moment, she thought, but the hallway they had traversed moments before was still and silent, the glowing light of the sludge unchanged upon the walls. She continued her circuit of the room, checking boxes and crates and other bits of debris and piles of broken bones littered about. She didn't think there was much to find at the moment, but that never meant anything. A warrior had to stay alert; it was the lax moment of slackened vigilance in the field that killed. Besides, her instincts told her that something was wrong here, very wrong indeed.

As her circuit took her around to the opposite entrance to the chamber Melody glanced out in to the hallway beyond. It was like a mirror to the one behind them from the other door. Two long green runnels of glowing lime plague goo against the walls on either side of the walkway that stretched a little way ahead before curving out of sight. There were motionless green oozes submerged just beneath the goo here, too. Why weren't they moving or coming after the two intruding elven women? Could they not sense the presence of those around them? Or did they have to be controlled in some fashion? This whole situation just didn't feel right, her instincts were screaming at her that something was very amiss, despite her eyes showing her that nothing was going on. So she continued her circuit around the room, coming full circle and beginning again. She didn't know what else she could do.

As she passed Sylvanas on her second pass she saw that the incense haze had consolidated into thick smoky lines trailing from the cone out to each orb, then up from each orb to encompass each banshee's frozen floating form, overlaid with a second line of the dark energy Sylvanas was channeling. She had no idea how long this ritual was going to take, and she passed on her way to continue around the room again.

It was as Melody came around to the further door a second time that the roar split the air. She spun on her heal towards the closer door to Sylvanas in time to see a massively hulking figure barreling in towards her queen. The thing was a hideous pale amalgamation of sewn together pieces of various corpses, mutilated and mutated beyond all recognition. The giant abomination was moving faster than she would have thought possible, and with no time to react Sylvanas had time only to spin around before a mass of spikes and chains burst forth from the creature. Sylvanas screamed in rage and pain as the wall of jagged metal spikes and chains slammed against her pinning her to the wall, her echoing voice piecing the air as she yelled wordlessly and struggled against the chains. The giant abomination roared again in response.

Melody's mind was blanked with a white hot rage as she brought her sword around, her only thought being to protect Sylvanas. She did not stop to consider if this thing was actually a threat to her queen or, if it was, if that meant that she would be any better or would simply be squashed under foot. All could think to do was scream defiantly and charge the creature.

Sylvanas' yell turned in to words, "Melody! Don't!"

The words slid off the white rage coating her thoughts as Melody charged straight up to the creature in the space of no more than the blink of an eye. She sank her blade in to the pale flesh of the thing's leg all the way to the hilt with a snarl. Then the world was still, a moment frozen in time as the huge creature looked down at the gnat on it's leg in a considering way. Sylvanas watched from her immobilized position and Melody stared up at the gargantuan thing for a very heavy pause before it reared it's head back in a terrible bellow, and the chains it had been using to hold Sylvanas shifted with blinding speed. Melody did not have time to react as the crushing weight of clattering metal overtook her in a wave. She felt the pierce of one spike puncture her shoulder and the force of the slam crash into her, slamming hard down atop her, smashing her back and into the floor. There was another scream, and she couldn't tell through the pain and the haze overtaking her if it was hers or not. The last thing she saw in the air overhead as she stared up from beneath the chains piled upon her before slipping in to unconsciousness was a streaking line through the air overhead zipping passed to bury itself in the monster's flesh. Then the blackness took her.

_The void swirled and colors came and went, sometimes forming images and sometimes just chasing each other. Images of places, of people, of scenery and of friends. And then the swirling colors became blackened chains. Black chains on the black background of a black void, snaking through the emptiness in a wave that surged forward to strike!_

Melody jerked awake with a startled cry and tried to sit up but found a hand pressing her back down. Her breath was coming in ragged pants but she could still hear a reassuring shushing sound coming from the figure beside her. Sylvanas' echo made the soothing noise sound as if it were coming from a comforting ghost, but it was still relaxing and Melody allowed herself to fall backwards, but was surprised when her head and shoulders landed against a soft pillow. Her pillow, she realized, in her bed. Sylvanas was slowly stroking the top of her head, delicately shifting strands of her dark red hair away from her face, hooking them behind her long thin elven ears. Her hands were bare she saw, and a glance revealed her gauntlets hanging from part of the armor stand beside her wardrobe, where her own armor had been placed as well. The light level was low, only two torches burned on either wall opposite from her huge four posted canopy casting an extremely intimate setting. The low light went a long way towards both soothing and exciting her in some ways in spite of her situation. She wasn't sure if that was Sylvanas' intent or not but it was at that moment she realized she was naked. She lifted the edge of the blanket covering her surreptitiously to glance down at herself and saw she was indeed nude, and she checked over the top of one of her ample breasts where the metal spike had pierced her flesh. The skin was smooth and unmarred.

She looked up in to Sylvanas' eyes questioningly. "What happened?"

"We were attacked by Patchwerk." Sylvanas said, continuing to run a hand over Melody's forehead and dark red hair.

Melody blinked, "Is that what that thing was called? It came in completely by surprise."

"I was a fool to leave us open to such a powerful creature. You had no chance against it, and I was busy with the ritual. I should have moved the banshees to a more secluded room before proceeding." Sylvanas sounded angry with herself.

"The banshees!" Melody said, sitting up straight. Sylvanas let her sit this time. "Did you...? I mean, did we succeed?"

"Yes, my vassal. When Patchwerk turned his attack on you he freed me and I was able to put a couple of arrows into him that drove him off. I could have chased him down to finish him, but I was more concerned with you and with completing our objective, so I let him go. As soon as he retreated I made sure you were still alive and not in immediate danger, then I completed the ritual successfully and teleported us back to Undercity using my hearthstone. As soon as we arrived back I summoned a priest to heal you and then brought you here."

Melody closed her eyes, "I'm so glad we succeeded." She sighed happily. "And you saved my life. I'm sorry my queen, I failed in my duty. I was there to protect you and it was you that saved me."

Sylvanas growled angrily, "No, that's not true, you didn't fail. I saved your life only after I endangered it in the first place. I should not have taken you with me."

Melody's eyes came open and she looked her queen directly in the eye, and it was the first time ever that she was able to do so without even a hint or flicker of the normal fading in her vision or a blush on her cheeks. She held her queens gaze steadily and said with more emotion than she honestly knew was even there, "My life is your to risk as you will. I made a vow to serve you in whatever way you required. Yet even had I not, I'd still have wanted to go. I want to stay with you and serve you, and if I had not been there you might not have been able to complete the ritual unaccosted. If my life helped you to accomplish your goals, then I am happy to lay it down in your service."

"No."

"What?"

Sylvanas shook her head. "I do not want you to give your life in my service. I want you to keep your life and continue to serve." She lowered her head in a surprisingly vulnerable fashion, and even more of a shock layed her hood back onto her shoulders baring her head to the air, her pale locks and thin blue ears swaying lightly with her movement, then even removed her cloak all together and hung it on the edge of one of the beds posts. Sylvanas leaned back and on to her side then, facing her vassal in a surprisingly open fashion, the mask of the commanding Banshee Queen finally cracking open to Melody for the first time. "No one has ever given themselves so willing to me before, let alone put their life on the line to save mine, and that was more than enough to endear me to you, though I could not afford to show it."

"I think... I think I could tell..."

Sylvanas blinked in surprise, as much as a shout of shock from another person. "You could tell?"

Melody gazed in to the Dark Lady's eyes, the confusing feelings she had been experiencing ever since Sylvanas walked in to her life finally beginning to make at least a little sense. "Every time you would toy with me or tease me, I could hear the faintest hint of amusement, but there was always something more... something I could never quite grasp..."

"You could tell that?" The anger had faded from Sylvanas' voice and she leaned in slight towards the sitting form of her vassal. "I've spent so much trying to keep people from being able to read me. I'm not sure if you're just extraordinarily perceptive or if my mask cracked for you in a way it has not for any other, but the more I thought about it the more you appeared within my thoughts. It was... unexpected..."

Melody turned on to her side to face Sylvanas and leaned forward in a subconscious response, finding that her breath was coming a little more quickly. "I was attracted by your strength and your will." She breathed. "I kept thinking that I wanted only to serve you, but I kept finding thoughts of you coming unbidden to my mind."

"You're so perceptive, I never expected to find a vassal with such a keen mind as you have. To have such insight in to the thoughts and feelings of others, even mine..." Sylvanas leaned closer still, surprised in some dim part of her mind that she was not really registering at that moment that she was actually opening up to someone. It did not bother her though; this proud warrior woman was beyond special. Unique even, she thought to herself.

Melody stretched upwards, her mind not fully keeping up with her desires as her body struggled to close the gap between their lips. Right that moment the most important thing in her mind was the connection that was building between the two women. Whatever this was that had connected them in the beginning and had been building up over the course of the recent months buried deep within their subconscious minds had not finally gained enough momentum to push it's way out in to the open between them, spurred onwards by the emotional amplitude of the danger they had shared together in Naxxramus. Now it was a force unto it's own, as unbridled and immutable as the sun itself.

As the distance between their lips diminished, Melody suddenly stopped, and looked up at Sylvanas with a small mischievous light twinkling in her green eyes. "Was it you that undressed me?"

Sylvanas growled, an echoing rent in the air, and pressed her lips down upon Melody's. Their fist kiss was electrifying and passionate, their arms circling each other as they sought the closeness of one another. The passion was there, but the fireworks exploding in their minds was just as much of a driving force as their tongues tangled even as their lips pressed. Melody ran a hand along Sylvanas' bare waist below her armored half plate top, the cool blueish skin of her Banshee Queen cold to the touch.

"Melody..." Sylvanas' echo was half way between a growl and a moan as she broke the kiss. "_Mirwa_... I want you... I admit it, you're everything I've ever needed in a companion. The perfect vassal, a strong fearless warrior, someone who wants to support me of their own free will. I do not need more mindless thralls. I need companionship, but that could never have been just anyone."

Melody brushed her lips against Sylvanas' cool lips again. "I want you too, my queen. I was simply afraid to admit it before. It's shaming to desire ones' own ruler, but I cannot hide it from myself any longer."

"It is not shaming now. The rest of the world does not need to see this. Here, in private, I can finally open up to someone, and I choose you. Here in private, we can be open with each other. I am not your queen here. I am not your monarch in these closed rooms, I am simply Sylvanas." She ran a hand tenderly down Melody's face again, hooking a finger gently on the very edge of her full red lips. "In here, I am yours, _mirwa_. My beloved."

"_Kyela_." Melody breathed, and Sylvanas pressed their lips together again at that response, an elven word full of the love and devotion she carried for her.

It began slowly, both women gazing intently in to each others' eyes, their hands gliding lightly and delicately up and down their skin. Melody found the buckles to Sylvanas' armor whenever her hand drifted up or down and undid them as they came in to her path, but she did not actively seek them out. The passion in the air was not a blind fury, but a tempered desire, just as powerful as any raging storm yet wielded delicately. Sylvanas' shoulder pads and armored chest plate fell free in this natural way as they ran their hands along each other, freeing her more than ample breasts which were large enough to rival Melody's own which were now resting above the velvet red blanket Sylvanas had wrapped her in earlier. Both women sighed contentedly as their breasts touched together, hard blue nipples meeting hard pink nipples in a soft bump as Sylvanas' armor made a ringing clang upon hitting the floor when released over the side of the bed. Sylvanas kicked off her boots and used her toes to peel down her stockings, and a few more moments of the slow gentle caressing treatment saw a repeat treatment of her armored leggings that her chest plate had received as Melody released them over the side of the bed as well with another clatter.

Both elven women now fully nude and laying within the velvet cradle of Melody's giant bed, the heavy caressing continued now accompanied by soft gentle kisses as they took turns brushing their lips together and occasionally twining their tongues in an intricate dance. While this was pleasing enough, the heat soon built in such a desire that Melody wanted more, and she could see from the burning intensity of Sylvanas' red eyes that she did as well. It was at that moment that both women simultaneously saw something more in the others' eyes, and their lips froze mid-kiss and they pulled their heads back. It was Sylvanas that spoke first.

"What's wrong, _mirwa_?" Her echo inquired.

Melody blushed slightly, annoyed to see that her cheeks had returned to betraying her. "I... well it's just that I... am not used to this. I'm not certain how to proceed."

Sylvanas blinked in confusion. "What do you mean? With another woman? I had heard that you-"

Melody shook her head. "No, not that. It's the opposite in that regard. I've never been with a man before. That's not the problem."

Sylvanas found an odd sort of excitement in that. She'd never lain with a man? What an unspoiled treasure! She tempered her excitement however and asked calmly. "What is it then?"

"Well I... it's just that I value you're strength so much, _kyela_. You're so... towering."

Sylvanas actually laughed, a low mirthful echo. "Towering? That has to be the oddest compliment I have ever received."

Melody blushed more and shook her head again. "I don't mean in stature, I mean your personality. You're so commanding, so sure of yourself, so impressive. It's part of what attracted me to to you, but... well. To put it bluntly, I am used to being the... aggressor... in a relationship."

The pieces fell in to place of what Melody was trying to say, and Sylvanas nodded in understanding. "Ah, I see. I've spent the last several months during the time we were growing closer without really realizing our positions giving you gifts and taking care of you, and my status in the world combined with that makes me the aggressor."

Melody nodded. "Don't misunderstand, I don't think I mind it. I just... do not really know how to submit..."

"Would you like to stop? I do not wish to make you uncomfortable."

"No!" The word came more forcefully than she intended, and she took a deep breath and moderated her tone despite the fact that Sylvanas had not even flinched. "No, I am... actually rather intrigued by the idea of being the one pursued for once. I just don't know how to go about it. You'll have to be patient with me. Teach me what I lack."

Sylvanas smirked, "I can do that. I do so enjoy the chase and the challenge." She reached out and stroked Melody's cheek with a hand, her cool blue fingers brushing against warm cheek and chin. "Your job is to lead me on a merry chase, my proud warrior. Don't make it too easy to catch you, even when being caught it what you want most in the world. The chase has it's own fun."

Melody smirked back now, the blush in her cheeks finally fading a bit. "Shall I run now then?"

Sylvanas growled, a low husky echo this time, and jumped up with a surprising speed, flipping Melody on to her back and pinning her down with her hips, blue mound hovering over pale as both of their ample breasts swayed with the motion. "No, this chase is done. You get to run next time. For this time, I've already caught you and am allowed to enjoy my prize."

"What were you going to tell me?"

The abruptness of the request paused Sylvanas for a moment before she recalled what had crossed her mind just as Melody had had her concern. "Oh, just a small matter of how to proceed. Undead flesh is somewhat less... hmm... sensitive, than living flesh." She lifted an arm and pinched it between two fingers of her other hand to demonstrate. "When it's your turn, you will have to try harder than you may be used to with me."

"I understand."

"Good girl."

Melody flushed with pleasure at those words as she had on the back of the wind rider, but this time she was free to enjoy it as Sylvanas leaned down to claim her prize. Her breasts dangled down to softly brush over top of Melody's as she began to trail little kisses along Melody's shoulder and clavicle, then suddenly gave a nip to a soft bit of flesh at the nape of her neck. Melody cried out in surprise but the pain was more pleasurable than hurtful, and Sylvanas continued her trail along the outside of her neck. The small biting nips came interspersed every now and then, and Melody cried out in surprised pleasure each time. When Sylvanas reached the top of her neck on one side, she shifted over to trace the same line up her other shoulder. She was skilled at this, but it seemed a little out of practice as one of the nips on Melody's left shoulder at the base of her neck left a small bite mark and a tiny bead of blood, but it hurt no more than any of the others. She'd had worse stubbing a toe.

Sylvanas worked her trail of biting kisses all the way up along Melody's jawline, leaving a trail of burning desire along the Sin'Dorei woman's flesh as she went, and when their lips met they paused for another kiss, this time their lips meeting with the passion that had been so tightly tempered. Then Sylvanas worked her way down Melody's neck once more, down the center and on to her chest, entering the valley between Melody's large breasts. The Blood Elf was panting the entire time, issuing tiny moans of desire as she clutched at Sylvanas' shoulders with her hands, encouraging her onwards. Sylvanas trailed over to Melody's right breast with her nipping kisses, leaving another tiny bite mark just above the right beast, then ceased switched from teeth to just using her lips to nip at tender breast flesh as she circled all the way around the ample round globe, producing a spiral as she came ever further in ward to the nipple until finally reach it. She stretched out her tongue and flicked it experimentally, eliciting a loud moan from Melody's lips. Sylvanas flicked it back and forth several times, reaching up to squeeze the large breast with one hand before taking the nipple in to her mouth. Melody arched her back and moaned, her body subconsciously seeking to the object of her desire, her hips pressing upwards towards Sylvanas.

"How impatient of you." Sylvanas chided, but she was smirking again even as she shifted her legs slightly to deny what Melody's body sought. Melody moaned slightly in protest even as Sylvanas shifted her head so that she could administer the same treatment to the Blood Elf's large left breast as she had done to the right. Sylvanas felt her undead heart begin to respond, quicken it's pace slightly in response to the gorgeous naked willing Sin'Dorei woman below her. Her first ever real companion, given of her own free will, but interested in more than just the Banshee Queen. She wanted to serve Sylvanas both as her queen and as a woman. Sylvanas felt her own desire between her legs begin to respond finally as her slow heart fueled the fire now in her veins. And so it was with this reverence that Sylvanas traced the same nipping kissing spiral around Melody's left breast to end in the teasing and suckling of her nipple there as well, and she was rewarded with the same gasps and moans issuing from Melody's slightly parted lips as before. Such a sweet sound, Sylvanas thought.

"Sylvanas! _Kyela_! Please! I need you!"

Sylvanas blinked. It occurred to her that she had been torturing her young Blood Elf for nearly a quarter of an hour with her nipping kisses and suckling of her nipples. This was not exactly an extreme amount of time, but how neglected must she have been to bend so quickly. She felt a pang of sympathy for the elven woman; it had been a very long time for her as well. She leaned her head down to Melody's sternum to begin a new line of the kisses, "I will grant your release, _mirwa_." She breathed against the flesh and begin to trail her nips downwards, leaving her chest and crossing her flat stomach. She left a line of kisses around her naval and proceeded downwards between her perfect rounded hips, which she clawed playfully with her fingernails as her lips entered that smooth secret precious valley between her legs.

Melody for her part was lost in ecstasy. She moaned loudly and tangled one hand in Sylvanas' pale locks while taking up her left breast with her left hand to roll her nipple between her fingers as Sylvanas surprisingly hot tongue contrasted with her cool lips as she left a string of fire and ice with them along her delicate mound. She kissed and nipped and licked at every inch and crevice of Melody's mound and then finally gave in as Melody arched her hips and moaned loudly with need. Sylvanas let the Sin'Dorei woman put her legs over her shoulders as she positioned her face between her legs, but she did not give in easily. Sylvanas licked and kissed at Melody's smooth outer lips first, starting with one side then moving to the other. Melody was moist and burning with desire and this only served to inflame Sylvanas' own need as she moved slowly inward to that promising crevice. Melody was a perfect specimen of womanhood, her mound and lips shaped just right to hide that perfect little nub within, and Sylvanas took her time with her licks and kisses and tiny little nips and even a few suckles here and there to slowly draw the delicate pearl out of hiding. Slowly it emerged to the chorus of Melody's moans and gasps as Sylvanas' perfectly timed tempo brought it out, and after running her lips up and down Melody's crevice slowly several times, she finally gave the gorgeous Blood Elf woman what she wanted.

Melody's moan was nearly a yelp as Sylvanas took her bead into her mouth, flicking it with her tongue even as she suckled on it with her lips. Her grip on Sylvanas' pale hair tightened and squeezed her nipple hard as that tongue rolled the nub slowly and wetly from one side to another. Sylvanas was slow and methodical at first, which was exactly how it should be, and as Melody arched her back and moaned ever louder she glanced down to see those red burning eyes staring up at her from between her legs, watching her in her passion. That gaze was as intense as she had ever seen it, and she held it effortlessly now as she watched her queen, her lover, provide such sweet pleasures to her. Sylvanas slowly rolled that bead, alternating now from licking to suckling and then dipping down every so often to lick at her entrance as well. She never stopped her tongue, and Melody found herself on the edge. It had taken no time at all, or it had taken eons. She moaned her loudest moan yet as she now clutched Sylvanas with both hands as the Dark Lady found just the right spot and began to hum in to her core.

"Yes! _Kyela_! _Enaerson_! Right there!" Melody all but screamed as the humming in to her core became a vibration she could not possibly hope to last against, and her climax tore through her body, her muscles twitching in ragged spasm from head to curling toes as she rode the wave, arching her back and screaming out "Sylvanas! _Kyela_!" over and over again. The vibrating hum that pierced straight in to her center pulled her onwards as Sylvanas licked and suckled her through her peak and then the hum began to taper off slowly. It brought her down yet dragged it out for much longer than she was used to, and by the time it retracted all together she could do nothing more than collapse back in to her red velvet covers and pillows, panting raggedly.

"Wh... what... was that?"

Sylvanas chuckled slightly as she licked Melody clean and then licked the last of her sweet nectar from her lips. "I am the Banshee Queen. All banshees have a degree of control over their voices and can produce different vibrations in auditory tones that others cannot."

"It was a banshee wail?" Melody gasped, shocked.

"No, not a wail." Sylvanas stood and moved to lay beside Melody and began to idly stroke and pet the soft skin of her breasts and stomach with one hand as she explained. "The ear drum is capable of resonating with sound waves received from an array of frequencies from high to low. There are some frequencies however that are too high or too low to be heard by a mortal ear. A banshee's scream affects the upper sound waves to produce pain by vibrating those sound waves in a piercing fashion on a higher auditory frequency. What I did to you was the exact opposite. I pitched my banshee tone to instead vibrate the lower frequencies to produce a pleasurable affect."

Melody considered this a moment as she got her breathing under control, then swatted at Sylvanas playfully. "That's cheating."

Sylvanas blinked. "Cheating?"

Melody nodded. "I can't do anything like that to you in return. I don't have a banshee's voice."

Sylvanas' smirk was back. She found it was coming easier and easier here in private to open up to her companion. She would just have to be careful it did not slip in public. "You are under the mistaken impression that I'm going to allow you to do anything to me at all."

Melody's face fell in a dismayed look, "What? Why not?"

Sylvanas lifted herself up and at this and grabbed one of Melody's legs by the ankle and lifted it up, jolting both women slightly so that their large breasts jiggled in unison. "Because, _mirwa_, I am the aggressor, remember? And I am giving you a lesson on being the one chased. And I have found that the sight of you in the throes of passion has inflamed my desire to such heights that I must take you, right now."

With that Sylvanas lowered herself down so that her hips interlocked with Melody's and she pressed her slit down upon her lover's. Melody gasped as Sylvanas reached down to spread open both of their lips, lining up so that the sensitive little pearls could touch, and began to rub her core against Melody's center.

Melody grabbed on to Sylvanas' legs to both steady them and keep them locked together, her delicate nub rubbing against Sylvanas' bead as they both began to roll their hips in unison. The feel was godly, and it did not take long before both women were panting raggedly. The motion of their love making caused their ample breasts to bounce and sway gently in time and neither one was able to close their eyes as they were both too enraptured at the heavenly sight of the other. Even Sylvanas was moaning and panting, her undead body now inflamed enough that her heart was beating the fire of her blood through her veins at the speed of a living person, and Melody found to her surprise that the undead Quel'Dorei was beginning to be warm to the touch as she clutched at her legs and hips as they both hung on. They moaned and they moved together, united in their love, blue mound locked to pale as their legs clutched each others' hips. Sylvanas had ahold of one of Melody's legs and began to kiss and nip at it as she had done to her lover's neck and shoulders earlier, leaving a few bite marks in her passion as she slowly lost control, riding her lover into the velvety cushions of the bed. Melody could only hold on, moaning louder and louder and clutching at Sylvanas ever tighter as her body began to heighten towards her second climax, so delicious was the feeling and the sight of Sylvanas atop her. Sylvanas' echoing voice began to change to a higher moan as well, and she began to grind her hips faster and harder as the moment drew nearer. She could feel the fire in her veins driving her onward as her body peaked as well.

The two elven women both let out a scream at once which rang off the walls as they climaxed simultaneously. Sylvanas ground her pulsing and quivering core in to Melody's center as the warrior woman held on tightly and rolled her hips back in response. They kept the speed and tempo of their love making up for several long moments as their mounds bumped and rolled together, their hips doing the work as they clutched each other with their legs. They let out screams and moans which slowly lowered in octaves until they were spent, and both allowed themselves to half lay half collapse back in to the red velvet fluff of the bed. Sylvanas shifted herself so they were laying together, and they wrapped their arms around each other, their large breasts pressing together as they pressed their bodies against each other.

"You're so warm now." Melody said, the glow of her after effects tinging her voice.

"Undead bodies require very little blood flow normally, but as with the living active exercise gets the muscles needing it which gets the heart going." Sylvanas explained.

"Mmm." Melody responded, and trailed a finger along the faint sheen that had developed on Sylvanas' skin. "And you sweat?"

"Somewhat. It's more closely compared to condensation as far as how the effect works for us, but it looks similar."

Melody could indeed see that the sheen wasn't a film but many tiny beads, similar to a cool glass of liquid in a hot environment. It was different to her own sheen, which the skin was working to reabsorb and so had spread more evenly. "I understand, I think."

"Mmm. Good girl. Now, I believe I have a rain check on an offer of a bath?"

Melody blushed in spite of herself, and nodded. "That sounds heavenly."

* * *

"So as the months had passed with you performing your duties as my vassal, I had found much to my surprise that you were nudging your way further and further into my thoughts and in to my desires," Sylvanas explained to her young Death Knight charge, Melody's blue eyes staring raptly in to Sylvanas' red from her position in her arms. "And I could tell that you reciprocated, that I was working my way in to your heart. The mutual attraction was burning it's way through both of us, but it was more than that. It was the connection we were forming, through your eagerness to serve and my enjoyment of your sensibilities and your fervor. I had never had a vassal swear to me of their own free will before and never offer their life for mine so readily as you did in Naxxramus that night against Patchwerk, and I found myself enraptured by you, though I refused to admit it at first. I have a hard time letting people in, and I have not had a lover since I... since before Arthas…"

Melody's echoing Death Knight voice filled in the gaps. "Since you were alive." Sylvanas nodded. "Since before Arthas turned you and… raped you?" Sylvanas turned her head away, stung by the pain of the memory, but nodded again. Melody wrapped her arms around her queen and squeezed, nuzzling her head against Sylvanas' tenderly, brushing her lips along the base of Sylvanas' long thin elven ears which were laying flat with her pained emotion. She whispered tenderly "I will always protect you, as I did in life. Even from him, or from anything that threatens to come between us."

"And I promise not to let anything else happen to you." Sylvanas replied, her ghostly tone matching Melody's. "I feel as though I have failed in that regard, both as your queen and as your love. I let you take the fall for me in Naxxramus and I let you die in the battle you fought for me, but I swear from now on I will always protect you in return."

"You did not fail me my queen, my love, _kyela_. I do not remember the events you have explained to me, but as you speak I can still find the feelings behind them buried within my heart, even if it is still now. Even if I did however, I doubt I would see it that way still. What I did, I did for you freely because I desired nothing more than to serve, and with my feelings to guide me, that is still all I want." Melody smiled mischievously and quirked an eyebrow. "Well… maybe not all…"

This time it was Sylvanas who initiated the kiss, cool lips meeting cool lips, their tongues touching but not with the fervor and passion of before, but with a the delicacy of two lovers who wanted merely to express their devotion, to feel that the other was there for them and would always be, so long as they had any say in the matter. Their lips brushed together and their hands cupped the backs of each others' necks as their heads tilted together as the two undead elven women sat in each others' arms, content just to be in the company of the other. Nothing else existed right then except for their kiss sealing their devotion.


	5. Chapter 5 - Duskrunner

Sorry for the late posting all, but work has been a real bear. A giant, angry stressful bear who sat on a branch wrong. .;; Hopefully this chapter will help. I tried to lay a lot of groundwork for future chapters in it! Yay!

I'd like to thank everyone who has shown support so far, it really helps. I enjoy reading all of your feedback. As always, feel free to leave any sort of comments or thoughts or even corrections, as long as it's polite!

And the usual notes: I do not speak or know Thallasian or Elvish, I just look up words that suit me! See previous chapters for explanations on what they mean, though this chapter is mostly just the two pet names/endearing terms.

I do not own anything, all rights to Blizzard, I'm just a crazy fan nerd. ^.^

* * *

The night had grown late and the moon was now on it's way down the far side of the sky, yet it continued to shed it's pale light over the landscape, casting eerie shadows over the length of the ruins of the battlefield in a hollowed valley between various hills. It had been a vicious fight judging from the way the bodies lay strewn across the sparse dry grass of the terrain with no real visible formation lines where one side ended or began. The majority of it seemed to be men and women of the Forsaken against an array of broken Scourge remains but was peppered here and there by the odd orc or tauren. There were discarded weapons and broken bits of armor littered everywhere and even a few destroyed siege weapons at the base of the hills atop which sat broken down battlements that had been constructed just for the fight. It had only been a few scant hours since the battle had ended, yet Melody Duskrunner still had no idea what the fight had been about or why it had occurred despite the fact that her life had met it's end here. She had stood after the recounting of events she had so recently received and gone to stand beside one of the shattered walls atop one hill studying the moonlit field below, and every so often examining the stone of the wall beside her where she had died, her faintly glowing blue eyes intent on gathering as much detail as possible and her dark red hair cascading loose down her back rustling slightly in a faint breeze on the night air. She was trying to process everything she had been told, to reconcile it within her mind. She had only a knot of feelings within to guide her, so she wanted to memorize as much of this scene as she could. She had awoken bare hours ago stiff with the curse of undeath and with no memory of any kind. It was… disconcerting.

She turned slightly to the ruined stone beside her, still frosted over with small shards of ice crystals. The remnants of a brutal breath attack by a Frost Wyrm, one of the most devastating creatures of the Scourge, or so she had just been told. A sense of growing frustration was building within her at having no memory of events but which she apparently still had very strong feelings about. She had an urge to reach out and to touch the frosted wall again, but the last time she had done that had resulted in a terrible image which sprang to mind of it's own accord, and she was not eager to repeat that experience. She could already feel it springing to mind however, and she tried hard to squash it, to stamp it down in to the recesses of her mind, but it came anyway…

_Standing atop the battlement to help cover a hole in the defensive line, she heard a cry from the other end of the wall and turned in time to see a massive shape looming out of the evening's light, the sun glinting off the pearly white bones of the massive creature which coalesced with a pale blue sheen of cold around it. The fearsome bone dragon's head turning towards the wall as it loomed out of the air. It's gigantic maw gaped wide and it roared, a stream of icy wind and hail spewing forth over the top of the wall, directly at her. There was a scream, and then the pain, the cold. So cold…_

"Melody? Melody! _Mirwa_!"

It was her screaming again, and she realized she was shaking. Melody forced her eyes open and found her arms clutched across her ample chest which was still covered by a breastplate that was a part of the armor she had worn in life, a symbol of the warrior she had been. Yet it too was frosted and cracked, popped apart in places by expanding shards of ice. She was so cold… her skin so pale… a corpse. She was a broken husk of a living warrior…

"_Mirwa?_" The voice reverberated with an other worldly echo but the concern was still there, and Melody looked up. Sylvanas Windrunner stood over her with a hand on her shoulder, keeping her from toppling over as she huddled and shivered. The Banshee Queen of the Forsaken still had her hood thrown back to reveal her pale locks and long thin elven ears to the night sky, her bluish undead skin glinting slightly in the pale moon light. When had she crouched down?

Melody looked up deep in to the piercing red eyes of Sylvanas, the only link she had to the world at the moment. She had died. No… she was dead. An undead corpse cursed to walk to earth without the release of an afterlife. She was an unnatural abomination of the sanctity of the living and she had no other ties to the world at large.

"I'm a corpse…" Melody's own other worldly echo in her voice was laden with despair which was now welling up within her, brought on by the thoughts of what she was now and the images of her own death still lingering in her mind's eye.

Sylvanas knelt beside Melody and brushed her dark red hair back tenderly from her face. Her fingers belied her voice however, the echo of which was hard as steel. The commanding tone of the Dark Lady which would brook no nonsense. "The oppressive feelings you are now experiencing are a normal part of waking with the curse of undeath, just like your memory loss. Though not so severe in most cases as your memory blanket seems to be, the fact that they are may indicate that your despairing moods may also be worse than normal."

"But I'm an abomination!" Melody cried and stood up abruptly, shrugging off Sylvanas' hand as she did so. "I'm a monster now!"

Sylvanas sighed, an echoing rip in the air, and stood as well, a much calmer movement than that of her companion. "We are all abominations, but we are not monsters." Sylvanas said in an inclusive fashion, indicating all of the Forsaken. "You were and still are a strong, beautiful, and capable woman, and though you have undergone a transformation, at your core you are still yourself."

"How do you know that?!" Melody shouted, the blackness of her despair threatening to overwhelm her now, closing in on her mind along with the memory fog already there. "How CAN you know that?! I am a shell, a husk! As empty and hollow as this broken armor of the tattered remnants of my life!" Impulsively, she wrenched her gauntlets off and then reached down and ripped at the straps that held the breastplate and leg plates of her armor to her. Rather than loosening with a jerk they broke free with the sound of an icy snap, the magic of the frost wyrm's icy breath still touching them. With a cry she flung the broken bits of armor as far down the hill as she could, then sank to her knees as the bits of metal clanked when they landed and tumbled the rest of the way down the hillside with a clatter, the heat fading from her as the depths of her despair rolled over her like the blanket of fog on her memory had. The chilly night wind licked at her pale skin, but though she was now bare but for her boots and the silken cloth garments that normally separate skin from armor, she barely noticed it. Her skin was at least as cold as the air around it, thanks to the curse of undeath she now bore.

Sylvanas watched her lover's outburst and stood clear so Melody had room to herself for the moment. She had to fight the urge to immediately run to her. She was not used to being so personally involved in the life of another. She was the Dark Lady! The Banshee Queen of the Forsaken! Others lived and died and were reborn with the curse of undeath at her command! She was so used to her mask of cold authority that she had so carefully sculpted over the years that she now found it difficult to set the mask aside when needed. Yet here now stood before her this glorious woman who had so infected her heart. She had not taken a mate in a very long time, since her living years as the Ranger General of Silvermoon, and now she found she could not stand the thought of losing Melody. It's why she had risked tipping her hand by making her a Death Knight, raising her when she had fallen in battle. If anyone found out that she actually knew how to create Death Knights, let alone had improved upon the process with her own magics, that information could get back to the other leaders of the Horde, and that could spell immense trouble for her. There were those who were already concerned with how far her reach with the undead went. Fools, the lot of them! Yet she would happily allow that risk in this case if it meant keeping this woman by her side…

Sylvanas could contain her need to go to Melody's side only a moment or two after the death knight sank to her knees, and Melody felt a hand on her shoulder as the Dark Lady crouched beside her. Her echoing voice issued forth with a surprising amount of delicacy, in spite of her severe queenly expression. "I do know. I know because I was there, _mirwa_. I knew you in life and I got to know who you are. Do you think just anyone could have cracked my mask and entered my heart? You may not remember yet, but I do. I remember a strong and independent warrior, a woman of honor and valor. I remember a woman of dignity and uncompromising morals, a woman who swore herself to my service because she had no one to turn to yet needed to serve her people. I remember a woman with a tender side, though wrapped in her stern warrior exterior. More than that, I know you are still the same person in your heart now as you were in life because of your actions since you've awoken. Even with only your feelings to guide you, the first thing you've done this night after waking up was to hear out my explanations and then re-swear yourself to me. You were more concerned for my feelings and worries about this situation initially than you were for yourself. You are a unique and wonderful person, Melody, and you did not deserve this. I swear to you I will be here to help you through your transition into undeath. It will be harder on you than it has been on any other who has turned because of the way in which you were turned, and I am regretful of placing the burden of this curse upon you, but I could not lose you, and we will get through this together."

Even in such a personal and private moment Sylvanas' stern commanding demeanor did not waver, and just for the briefest of moments Melody could almost recall a memory of Sylvanas. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to part the fog blanketing her memory to see it, something about a cold stone dais and floating hazy forms… it was gone before she could fully grasp it though, the image floating away like a haze of smoke drifting away on the wind. She squeezed her eyes shut in frustration, pressing her hand to her forehead. "I can't… remember… why can't I remember?!"

Sylvanas put an arm around Melody's shoulders and Melody turned in to the embrace, cold blueish undead arm sliding against cold pale shoulders. The cold was bothering her less than it had earlier, and Melody simply enjoyed the closeness. She found her despair melting away at Sylvanas' touch, her burdens seeming to lift from her shoulders. "You said that… you turned me. You made me a death knight."

Sylvanas' tone was slightly hesitant. "I did."

"How?"

"… how?"

"How did you do it." Melody turned her head upwards to look in to Sylvanas' eyes, her blue faintly glowing eyes meeting Sylvanas' burning red eyes. "is this something other undead can do? It seems like it could be a dangerous thing. You mentioned before that you shouldn't have done it, and that it was a secret how."

Sylvanas shook her head. "It is something that very few can do, and until now has been exclusively an ability of the Scourge, mostly that of the Lich King."

"But you have found out how?"

"I… yes. I found out how some time ago, as I said before. Yet I dared not try until recently. It would be very bad for me if anyone were to find out I could do so. I only risked it because it was for you."

Melody opened her mouth to ask more, but the expression on Sylvanas' face said that the Banshee Queen did not wish to discuss the matter further right now. So Melody changed what she had been going to say, the ghostly echo in her voice curious now. "So what happens now? I can't imagine I just pick up my old life where I left off, even if I could remember any of it."

"We will return to Undercity and you will resume your duties in my service. Most people won't know anything except that I have a new underling. I will install you officially as Knight General of the Dark Rangers, assuming they accept you, and not many will know anything has changed. You were not officially a part of my ranks before, technically only on loan from the Reagent Lord of Silvermoon City, and even that was a highly secret exchange. I will tell Lor'Themar that you died in the battle, and there won't be very much to connect your old life to your current one."

"Assuming they accept me?"

Sylvanas' facade cracked slightly in a small smirk. "I command the Dark Rangers and they serve me, but there is much more too them than that. They are a society, of which I am a part just as much as they are under my command. It will not be up to just myself."

"I see." Melody said, a sense of uncertainty creeping in.

"Do not worry about it, I'm sure all will be well with them. Just remember, whatever you say to them when the time comes, say it with confidence and pride."

She nodded, accepting this. "What do you mean by "most people?" Melody asked.

"To those few with enough wits to recognize the differences, small as they may be, there are certain telling factors that would set a death knight apart from one of my Dark Rangers. It is those which we must guard our secret against, but it shouldn't be too difficult."

Melody was silent a long moment as Sylvanas continued to crouch there, cradling her and supporting them both. It struck Melody on some level of just how motionless the undead could remain, and the position posed little problem to two such as they who had the body of a fighter, sculpted and honed for agility and action.

"What if… I wanted to reconnect with people from my old life?"

Sylvanas blinked. "Well… I suppose you could. I hadn't considered that possibility…"

"It would make things even more difficult for you if I did, wouldn't it?" Melody asked, picking up on the seriousness in Sylvanas' tone.

Sylvanas' face softened slightly and she reached her free hand up to run a finger along Melody's cheek. "When it comes to you, I find the thought of difficulty does not seem as important as your happiness. Of course you may connect with your old life if that's what you wish."

Melody reached up in response to the affectionate gesture, resting a hand on Sylvanas' forearm. "Thank you. I don't know that I will, I still don't remember anything from my life, but I will be sure to discuss anything I choose to do with you before taking any action."

"Thank you." Sylvanas said. "We'll get through this together. I promise."

Melody leaned her head up to Sylvanas' face and brushed their lips together, which Sylvanas returned by tilting her head in to it. It was a sweet tender kiss, not a passionate one, yet no less full of the love and affection they shared.

"Come." Sylvanas said, and stood. "It's time to return to Undercity."

Melody stood with her by reflex, then paused uncertainly. "Uhm… how are we going to return?"

By way of answer, Sylvanas produced a small circular white stone with a blue rune etched upon the surface from a pouch at her belt. "Do you recognize this?" When Melody shook her head, Sylvanas continued. "It is a hearthstone. It will return us to Undercity, to my private rooms. I have heavy magical wards and enchantments to prevent such things of course, but my hearthstone is specially attuned. Take my hand."

Melody took the hand Sylvanas offered and held on, not really certain what to expect. Sylvanas held the stone up and began to channel. A green glowing magical energy surrounded them both pulsating through the air, and a moment later the green light flashed and filled her vision and Melody felt a peculiar sensation come over, rather like diving in to a body of water headfirst but without the wetness. When the light faded from her eyes, they were standing in a bedroom. The walls were all of cut and fitted stonework and there was only one door, a heavy dark stained oak wood with iron bindings reinforcing it. A heavy lock was set just below a hanging circular iron door handle. The bedchamber of Sylvanas Windrunner was a surprisingly simple affair. A couple of large wardrobes, a few racks for armor or personal gear, some shelves which held a few books and the odd personal affect here an there, and a wash stand in one corner. The space was not cluttered at all, and the room looked as though it were not used often. There was a massive four posted bed in one corner that was made and completely neat despite being covered in lace and looked as though it had not been slept on in some time.

"Do undead-" Melody began, then paused and restarted her sentence. "Do we need to sleep?"

Sylvanas slipped her hearthstone back in to it's belt pouch. "We don't require as much rest as the living. An hour or two every few days would probably suffice. We can sleep as we choose however, and some of the Forsaken who used to be human hold to a sleeping schedule to maintain a structure to their daily routines, but you will require little enough."

"What about eating?"

"We do not require food specifically no, blood is enough to sustain us, which is why many Forsaken choose to consume raw meat. They aren't specifically after the meat but it contains the blood they do require. I myself dislike chewing on raw flesh, so I choose simply to drink some blood whenever I need to. It's a personal preference really."

Melody made a face, feeling slightly disgusted. "Well it sounds nicer to me than chewing on a dead animal."

Sylvanas smirked again, but wiped it away after a moment. "Sometimes you have to deal with what is to hand." Sylvanas hung her travel pack on one of the stands nearest the door and pulled her cowl up over her head, settling it around her ears and resuming her commanding look, then walked over to one of her wardrobes. She opened one of them and reached inside and withdrew an extremely large voluminous black cloak and cowl, the sort that could completely cover a person with nothing showing. "I need you to strip."

Melody's heart gave a couple of quick pulses and she felt a faint blush heat her cheeks. It wasn't embarrassment that caused it though as she found Sylvanas' piercing gaze on her body. "I'm sorry…?"

"I don't have time to explain right now, but there is much to do and little time. I'd like to get you public as soon as possible, but I don't want to reveal you at all until we have everything in place. I am under constant scrutiny both by enemies and allies, and I want to announce you immediately upon entering the Royal Quarter as Knight General so the switch is as seamless as possible. Yet I cannot do so until you've been inducted, so I'm going to take you to the Dark Rangers in secret to induct you immediately. I'm sorry I have to be so quick about things, but I promise once we get through the rush to get you in to your place in Undercity we will take some time to re-acclimate you."

Melody nodded and did as she was told. She pulled her destroyed boots off with much less ferocity than she had shown to the other pieces of her armor earlier, and then peeled the small silken shirt and leggings off that protected her skin from the metal of her armor. Standing there nude before Sylvanas caused heat to rush through her, but she suppressed it and attempted to pay attention to her queen. She looked at the worthless rags in her hand, the silk dirty and torn.

"I'll have someone discard those for you." Sylvanas said, a gentleness in her echo as she piled them with the boots beside the door. She also had to suppress the heat that suddenly flared within her, but it did not show on her face. With a swirl she draped the cloak around Melody's naked frame, avoiding looking at her lean body and ample assets, and covered her complete. She pulled the cowl up over her dark red hair and tied the cloak closed in front and shortly Melody was standing completely concealed.

"We are about ready now." Sylvanas said and withdrew a key made of mithril with a dark amethyst set in the end of it from a small concealed pocket sewn in to the inside of her cloak. It slid in to the lock with the rasp of metal rubbing against metal and Sylvanas gave it a twist, unlocking the door with a loud click. There was a slight shimmer in the air of purple energy about the door as the lock turned and then it disappeared. At Melody's questioning glance, Sylvanas explained. "As I mentioned, my entire quarters contain several magical enchantments to ward off those who might be foolish enough to invade them." She reached up to a blue stone mounted on the wall by the door and circled her hand over it three times. It glowed a very faint blue, and again answered Melody's unspoken question. "This will summon one of my vassals. Come with me."

Melody followed as Sylvanas pulled the door open and they stepped in to a centralized chamber with doors on all walls. She pulled the door closed and locked it again, producing another shimmer of purple energy. There was a fireplace in one corner of the room though it was cold and bare, and a few chairs around a table near it. A large bookshelf piled with books stood in another corner beside a large desk littered with parchment and quills. Beside it was a large lockbox that appeared to be bolted to the floor. It seemed like an entry room to Sylvanas' quarters which doubled as her private office. Sylvanas led the way across to the opposite door, slipping the mithril key back in to her inner pocket and withdrawing a separate one, this one cast from thorium with a ruby set in the end. This door was visiaully identical to the others but when the lock clicked when Sylvanas turned the key the energy shimmer was red this time. Sylvanas motioned Melody to follow and the two undead elven women stepped out in to a hallway that extended away from them, in the center of which stood a Forsaken. He was not tall, and was very unassuming. He in no way cut any sort of memorable figure what so ever, yet as they stepped in to the hall he bowed low and a gravelly voice issued forth.

"Welcome home, my queen. You summoned me?"

"Yes, I have someone to introduce you to. Melody, lower your hood." Melody did as she was bade, and Sylvanas gestured in her direction. "This is Melody Duskrunner, my newest vassal. Melody, this is Aleric Hawkins, one of my chief aides. He handles most of the day to day affairs of Undercity, reporting to Varimathras."

Aleric bowed deeply before Melody, if not so deeply as he had to Sylvanas. "Lady Duskrunner, I am pleased to make your acquaintance."

"She will be taking up all of Lady Dawnrunner's old duties and quarters in my service."

It was a good bit of trust that Sylvanas was putting in this man, yet if he was one of her chief aides she didn't see why he shouldn't be trusted. If he recognized the name similarity or her face he did not make any outward indication, merely bowed again. "I shall see to it that her rooms are prepared."

"Thank you Aleric, and do me a favor and find her some dark clothing to replace her old torn things. Some nice black and dark gray silks. Discretely, please. I am not yet prepared to announce her position."

Aleric nodded, gave yet another bow (how could the man operate with his head parallel to the floor so much?) and shuffled off down the corridor. He was so easy to pass over that as soon as he was gone he was out of her mind. She turned back to Sylvanas, raising her hood.

Sylvanas nodded, "Come. I will take you to begin the ceremony, and then I must make preparations."

The Banshee Queen led them deeply through the hidden passages of her private rooms off the Royal Quarter, taking them deep below the earth, traveling along unassuming and unadorned stone corridors until they reach a large room decked out like a dungeon. She had done nothing that Melody had seen the entire way down, yet there was a mass of assembled undead elven women down here, far more than she had expected. Every one of them had the blueish skin of undead in varying shades, and they were all nearly completely covered in black cloaks as she had been moments before. She knew none of them by sight, yet that knot of emotion within her stirred at some of the faces. Friends were here, more than friends. Companions, close companions.

There was no ritualistic opening, no warning or preamble of any kind. Sylvanas drew Melody to her, grabbed the cloak around her, twisted one of her arms and pulled. She was so unprepared that it was a simple matter for Sylvanas to whip the cloak from her body, leaving her fully nude before everyone assembled, and before Melody could really register what was happening, Sylvanas' arms grabbed her around her toned middle just below her voluptuous bosom and planted a firm and passionate kiss on her lips right in view of every Dark Ranger present. She expected an outcry or a cheer or something from those watching, but the room stayed silent and still, a mass of dark cloaked figures with red eyes blazing out from their cowls in the fashion Sylvanas herself wore watching on.

Melody was still reeling from the kiss and the heat that had inflamed within her despite the audience that had witnessed it as Sylvanas released her and gave her a gentle push forward. The Dark Lady's echoing voice rang through the hall, her most commanding tone permeating the air.

"I present to you today sisters one who I would name Knight General of your order. Most of you know her, yet now she is as we are. Cursed yet herself, broken yet whole, adrift yet found. I have taken her for my own, yet though I hide myself from the world I hide nothing from my sisters. Judge her worthiness as I have."

There was a slight rustle as every hand in the room produced a short wooden rod and the room echoed with a beat as every hand banged them against another with three sharp rhythmic cracks. _Whack whack whack._ The ceremony had begun. Melody glanced over her shoulder just in time to see Sylvanas duck out the door behind them and pull the door closed as she departed. Melody instantly missed her presence beside her, but she had said she had preparations to make and little time to do it in.

Melody turned back in time to see the undead women forming ranks before her. Once arrayed, one came forward. She wore and expression that said she was trying her best to keep serious despite a mouth that was used to smirking, probably at others' expense. She echoed loudly as Sylvanas had. "Who are you and why do you come before us?!"

_With confidence and pride. _The words came back to her and Melody stood as tall as she could, trying hard to ignore the fact that she was naked and her large bosom was nearly in the Dark Ranger's face. "I am Melody Duskrunner, and I ask to be accepted!"

She was not sure if this was the correct answer, but that was all she could think to say. The Dark Ranger seemed to accept the answer however, and a moment later she was stripping off her cloak. Sylvanas must have gotten word ahead of them somehow, for the woman was completely naked beneath it, as Melody had been beneath hers, and the woman intoned in her echo. "I hide myself from the world, and so I hide nothing from my sisters. I accept this one who would lead us." The rhythmic cracking of sticks sounded again, _whack whack whack! _She moved forward and placed a kiss on Melody's lips as Sylvanas had, though without far less passion, their nipples brushing against each other as the woman moved away and resumed her place in line.

Another Dark Ranger came forward and intoned, "Why should we accept someone new to us who has not proven herself worthy?!"

Melody was again at a loss for what to say. _With confidence and pride_. She kept her upright posture and echoed loudly back, "I wish to prove myself from now onwards in my service to my Queen!" The room was very still for a few moments and the Dark Ranger before her narrowed her eyes dangerously for a moment. On instinct Melody added "And to my sisters!"

No one made a relieved sound yet the danger disappeared as quickly as it had come, and the undead elven woman before her shed her cloak. "I hide myself from the world, and so I hide nothing from my sisters. I accept this one who would lead us." _Whack whack whack!_ Melody allowed herself a small internal sigh of relief as the Dark Ranger moved up to kiss her, then resumed her place in the formation before her.

A third Dark Ranger took her place. "How will you prove yourself to us?!"

Her instincts had led her well so far, and so she answered without hesitation. "It is impossible to completely prove oneself, but it is in the continued effort to do so that one may be judged worthy through their deeds to those closet to them." She was confident in this answer at least, and was pleased when the woman also removed her robe to stand naked before her.

"I hide myself from the world, and so I hide nothing from my sisters. I accept this one who would lead us."_ Whack whack whack! _Another kiss and she was back in formation.

The questions continued in this vein from one woman to the next, each asking her a question, and Melody giving an honest answer. She never faltered from that point forward, and the dangerous tone never returned. Finally when every woman was naked before her, all questions were finished, the first of them to intone the ceremony produced an object from a hidden shelf on a wall that Melody had not seen before. It was an engraved mithril circlet, carved all the way around with runes and embedded with a single large blood ruby set in the center. The undead elven woman walked forward and placed it on Melody's head, then knelt before her. The entire room followed suit, and they intoned together "We hide ourselves from the world, and so hide nothing from our sisters. We accept you who would lead us, and ask that you accept our pledge."

"I accept your pledge and ask only to be allowed to return the honor you have shown me through friendship, through honor, through service, and through sisterhood."

With that, the ceremony ended, and the room turned in to a smiling mass of naked undead elven women as they all rushed forward to hug or kiss her and welcome her to the Dark Rangers.

* * *

It had been several days since the ceremony with the Dark Rangers and Melody was still not entirely used to her new position. As Knight General she was allowed a spot directly on the royal dais to the left side and few paces back from Sylvanas so as to be close to hand to her queen should she require her services at a moment's notice, and from time to time she was sent off on the odd errand for the Dark Lady. The blood ruby studded mithril circlet around her head glinted in the dim light, another oddity she was not yet used to. Sylvanas had said she was a noble now, officially a lady with lands and a title, and though she could not recall her dislike of being nobility she could identify a knot of confusion and discontent within the jumbled ball of emotion that still roiled within her. The whole concept was foreign to her. She did not understand what being a lady meant or where these lands of hers were, and she had the feeling she didn't want anything to do with it. Yet it meant a place at Sylvanas' side, and for that she would put up with whatever she had to. If anyone needed her direction regarding these supposed estates of hers, well then they could take the time to track her down. It wasn't as though she was hard to locate.

That still surprised her. She was standing in plain sight and in full view of everyone who entered the Royal Quarter of Undercity to have an audience with Sylvanas. True, she was wearing the dark voluminous cloak Sylvanas had given her as well as a darkly lacquered red and black set of armor that Sylvanas had provided her to keep her in the matching scheme of the Dark Rangers, yet her face and hair were the same as they had always been despite the fact that her eyes now glowed faintly with an other worldly blue hue. She could not shake the feeling that anyone at any moment might walk in to the room and spot her and recognize her. It was an extremely disconcerting feeling, knowing that there were those out there that might be her enemies but not having any idea who they might be or how to guard against them. As with everything else, she would have to rely on Sylvanas' direction.

Melody watched idly as her queen granted audiences to those that required her attention. Most of their days since she officially became Knight General had been taken up in this fashion. She directly commanded the Dark Rangers under Sylvanas' direction now, and while she sent them on their assignments she herself was mostly stationed within Undercity. It was a little stifling, and she got the feeling she wouldn't have liked being cooped up any more now than when she had been alive. Heading out for some excitement or some action seemed like exactly what she needed. Perhaps later she could slip away for some sparring or a run. For now however, she was stuck on the large circular stone dais, trapped in the sprawling round dull gray stone hewn Royal Quarter.

Varimathras stood to one side dealing with those who did not seek the Dark Lady's counsel herself but needed royal approval or authority for their business. At least the large winged red demon had duties to tend to as he went over daily city matters with the Forsaken around him. She did not entirely trust the demon; she got a very uneasy feeling around him, though she was sure she had never interacted with him much before, even if she could not recall anything about him. He just didn't feel _right_ to her. She trusted Sylvanas implicitly, yet she would still keep an eye on him. For what, she did not know, yet she would remain vigilant. Still, she envied the fact that he had tasks to perform. She wished she had as much. Who knew being Knight General could be so boring?!

The line of people to see Sylvanas stretched along the walls of the chamber and out the door, extending down the hallway that lead to the Royal Quarter. Being a queen was busy work it seemed. Melody tried very hard not to appear bored. She may have had mixed feelings about her station, but she definitely wanted to give a good impression on the Dark Lady's behalf. Public image had to be maintained after all. None of these people knew the true nature of her relationship with her Sylvanas, and it would not do for her to look like some zoned out brainless looby while Sylvanas dealt with business. So instead she focused on faces, trying to make a mental note of each person that came through. She focused on their face and glanced over their posture, spotted the telltale signs of hidden weaponry indicated by a slight curve or crease in clothing or overcompensated walk, and noted ethnicity and type of dress to decide who came from where and what their business might be. She did not alert anyone to any type of danger; she was certain she could stop any attempt on Sylvanas' life, and everything she saw indicated no more than a boot dagger or skinning knife.

"Undercity thanks you for your service. I will have one of my vassals see to having your steeds readied and brought to the surface for your departure."

Sylvanas' echoing command brought Melody back from her little game and as she looked back she caught Sylvanas' red eyed gaze while the Forsaken before her dropped a dropped a deep bow and turned to exit the Royal Quarter. Melody took note of the man as Sylvanas nodded to her to indicate that last was an errand for her to do, and Melody spread her cloak in a skirtless curtsey to Sylvanas before turning to see about her task. A clerk handed her a strip of paper as she stepped off the royal dais with the Sylvanas' seal pressed in wax on it to show the authority of the order for the mounts. Melody nodded in acknowledgment as the clerk turned back to his duties and then turned around to head up the winding corridor that led to the main hub of Undercity. It didn't take long to traverse the fitted stone walkways that wound in broad sweeping curves that ran around the circular shaped subterranean city and she shortly found herself at the lifts that would carry her to the surface. Melody boarded the bone spiked platform as the doors opened and felt the familiar shift in the air pressure as she rose up the ruins of the ancient city above, and traversed them to find herself outside of Undercity.

The walk to Brill was not a long one and the walk took no more than a quarter of an hour to reach the Stable Master where the bone warhorses were kept penned. Melody presented the sealed order and did not have long to wait before a stable hand brought three of the undead beasts around tethered to one reign. Melody nodded and mounted the lead animal and rode them back to the front courtyard of the ruins of Undercity to wait for the man who was to claim the mounts. Once there she took up position opposite from a ramp that led up to an offshoot from the main yard where traffic was coming in and out from Silvermoon City via the translocation orb and resumed her little game of watching people and identifying potential threat.

It was nearly half an hour before the same Forsaken Sylvanas had granted the boon to came for his animals, shambling up to her from out of the ruins. He had no lower jaw and could not stand fully erect, and Melody found the sight comical in a way. He presented Melody with a sealed order identical to the one she had been given to procure the horses by way of identifying himself, and she handed them over to him with a nod betraying none of her amusement as he scrambled up on the back of one of them to ride them off. It took him three tries! Then she turned back to the ruins to return to her duties when she was stopped by a shout.

"Melody?!"

Turning back towards the translocation orb she watched as a Blood Elf man stepped off the ramp and jogged up to her, a few pieces of plate armor clanking as he did. He was tall with long dark brown hair pulled back in a single tail that was barely contained by a tie and bore a large overly polished shield.

"Melody! By the Sunwell, we'd heard you were dead!" The man exclaimed, gripping her shoulders in a very familiar fashion.

She reacted on instinct, twisting her shoulders and breaking his hold on her then stepping back and staring at him hard in the eye. There was a faint misting sound that coalesced in the air and out of her peripheral vision Melody was somewhat surprised to see a sheen of frost begin to build around her shoulders over her cloak and armor. It spread quickly, coating her upper arms and neck, faintly translucent and reflecting the pale sun light. The man drew back, visibly wilting, though from the frost coating her shoulders or from her cold glowing hard blue eyed stare she wasn't certain. She was just as surprised by the frost as he was; nothing like that had ever happened before. She wasn't going to let on however, and continued to stare at him. The man evoked feelings within that tight knot of emotion that was ever present within her, feelings she did not like.

"By the Titans…" he breathed, "What has happened to you?!"

"Do I know you?" She said coldly, the other worldly echo bouncing harshly off the stones of the ruins around them.

The man flinched, "Your voice…" the color seemed to be draining from his face as he stared in to her blue glowing eyes, then after a moment or two found he could not hold her gaze and cast his stare downward. "We received a report from Sylvanas herself after the battle saying you'd fallen during the fighting. Not all of the Crimson Blade made it out of that mess, but when I heard about you, I…" At this point he looked back up to her face. "What do you mean, do you know me? Of course you know me! Have you forgotten how I've slowly been winning your heart over the last several months?!"

Melody snorted, the echo in her voice making it sound like a ripping sheet. She might not have had memories of this man, but the recount she had received from Sylvanas the night she had turned her coupled with the anger and discontent she felt from the knot inside her countered what this man said. A name Sylvanas had given her that night came back to her. "You are Beldis?"

"Yes!" He looked visibly relieved and stepped closer to her, then stepped back again nervously as she narrowed her eyes and the frost coating her shoulders crackled ominously, spreading another inch or so outward along her chest. "I… uh… I've been courting you for some time now. Did something happen to you in the battle? I've heard of injuries that cause… memory loss..."

She turned her head slightly to the side and eyed him sideways. "You could say I took an injury…" she said cautiously. Death was certainly 'an injury' yet Sylvanas had impressed upon her how important it was to guard their secret, and she had no intention of betraying her queen's trust.

"That's terrible! What happened?"

"A frost wyrm—" She began, and then the image came again, bursting in to her mind like a firework.

_The pearl white bone, the shimmering frost, the hulking beast flying through the air as the sun glinted off it's bones, the cavernous maw, the roar, the billowing cloud of ice, the scream… her scream..._

"Melody?! Melody!"

The man was shaking her. She hadn't lost her footing this time, but she was bent over clutching her head. The one memory she had left from life was her death and she could not stop it from bursting in to her mind at times. She was shaking even beyond the man himself rattling her about like some sort of rag doll.

"Are you okay?" He all but shouted, shaking her. "Melody!"

"Get off!" She echoed roughly, shoving his hands away. "I do not remember you, and I do not feel as though I want to." She composed herself with a deep breath and straightened to her full height, not failing to notice how his eyes raked her voluptuous figure as she did so in a leering manner even in the midst of his supposed "concern" for her. "The woman you knew is gone. As far as you are concerned, she died in that battle." Melody couldn't pin down why she was being so harsh with this man who was doing nothing but showing concern for her outwardly, but she had had enough of him. He was pathetic and she did not like the way he leered at her. Every instinct and veiled emotion within her screamed disgust for him, and since all she had now were her feelings and instincts to guide her, she heeded them. "Whatever ties I had to you and yours are gone. I serve the Dark Lady now. Go back wherever you came from and leave me alone." The echo in her voice held anger, but it was a cold anger, the harshness of winter, the biting of brutal frost.

Beldis withered once more, backing away slowly. "I don't know what's going on here," his voice held more conviction than his face and demeanor suggested he had within him, "But I will find out!" And with that he turned and marched off, spoiling his huff slightly by stubbing his toe on a grassy crop and stumbling slightly. If she wasn't so annoyed she might have laughed.

This presented a situation that she would need to bring to Sylvanas' attention, however. Sylvanas had said that she could certainly seek out ties to her life if she'd wanted to, but she certainly would not have chosen that man. She was certain of that even without memory. Yet this meant that a tie to her old life had sought her out instead and was now attempting to reattach itself if the way he had reacted to her was any indication. She would need to let her queen know in case there was need to prepare for repercussion.

She headed back down the lifts and made her way back through the hub of Undercity to the corridor that took her back down to the Royal Quarter. The day had lengthened enough that most of the people wanting audiences with the Banshee Queen had seen to their business and departed. Only a few stragglers remained, and Melody did per norm and circled the dais to take up her position behind her queen. Sylvanas made no outward indication of her return, but that too was normal as they didn't want to reveal the true nature of their relationship. She had no doubt that Sylvanas had noted her return however, so she simply stood back and waited for her queen to finish with her business.

It had been nearly an hour already and as she watched the officials come and go, but Melody noticed that the frost coating her shoulders had only just started to… recede. This was the only word that came to her mind, as 'melting' certainly did not fit as it left no damp spots anywhere in it's wake. It seemed simply to evaporate in bare fractions of an inch increments over time. It was a curious thing and she had no idea what it could imply. It had happened in her anger and defensiveness earlier and had been completely subconscious. It must have been some new effect of her undead being of which she was not currently aware. Perhaps it would reveal itself more in time.

The candles that indicated the time of day mounted around on the walls had burned off in to late evening before the last officials to see Sylvanas departed the Royal Quarter leaving the Banshee Queen alone with her Advisers. Melody watched as Sylvanas finished up her business with these people. It was much later than the normal evening meal time would normally warrant, but that was fine. Melody had found ever since waking to undeath that she much preferred the night time over the day. She often wondered if this was a common change to those so cursed as she. Her patience was rewarded finally as the last Advisers were dismissed and she found herself blessedly alone with her queen as Varimathras and Aleric departed there room. Melody watched until they disappeared around the corner talking amongst themselves; she still did not like that demon. Then she walked up to the Dark Lady and snaked her arms around her neck. Sylvanas returned the embrace and leaned her had down for a kiss, their lips meeting in greeting. Sylvanas may be completely commanding and aloof in the public eye, but it was turning out that she was very warm indeed in private, which is where it really mattered to Melody.

"My Queen." Melody said coyly as they broke their kiss.

"My Vassal." Sylvanas smirked back, not letting go of Melody's middle, then she looked down at Melody's shoulders. The last remnants of frost were still fading but visible. "What is this?" Sylvanas asked, echoing voice slightly sharp as she brushed a finger over the clinging ice.

"I'm not sure." Melody admitted, and she recounted her run in with Beldis in the courtyard above while carrying out her duties. "I was going to warn you in case something came of it."

Sylvanas ran a thumb almost tenderly over the nape of Melody's neck and brushed another kiss across her lips. "Do not worry yourself, _mirwa_. If anything comes of it, we will deal with it. As to this," She indicated the frost covering her. "I believe it to be an aspect of your death knight abilities beginning to show themselves."

"Does it usually take time for such things to manifest in undeath?" Melody asked.

"Sometimes it can." Sylvanas said. "Perhaps we should see about finding you someone who could tell us more about it." Sylvanas said thoughtfully.

"You can't guide me through these changes?" Melody tried not to sound put out, but the slight tinge of hurt must have come through anyway because Sylvanas hugged her tightly.

"I have a good deal of knowledge on the matter, but I do not have the same abilities as you do. You are my first death knight, and even were I inclined to make another any time soon, I would not do so without knowing more about it."

That made sense, she supposed. "Who would be able to help?"

"I know of one individual, however…" Sylvanas paused. Her voice did not falter, yet she was clearly hesitant. "Do you remember mentioning Acherus? The Knights of the Ebon Blade?"

Melody nodded. "You said that we would not be welcome there."

"That was true at the time. They were agents of the Scourge and under the Lich King's control. However, as you've been here getting used to my service, they have since broken free of the Lich King and have taken over Ebon Hold themselves. I just received word of it a few days ago. We might be able to get help from them."

"I wouldn't want to impose or risk your secret term." Melody said, the concern etched on her face. Sylvanas was touched; she still was not used to another person being so concerned for her safety before their own so completely Melody was.

"No, it's alright. The Knights of the Ebon Blade are… well 'unaffiliated' is not the right term. Race is not a barrier to the Lich King's pull and so death knights can come from all peoples, so when the Ebon Blade broke free they found themselves in the unique position of needing to find allies amongst all factions. I suppose a better word for them would be 'unbiased.'"

"So one of them would help me?" Melody asked. The situation seemed to easy to her, and her judgment of the situation must have colored her voice because Sylvanas smirked.

"You are such a sharp little thing." She said affectionately, then the command in her tone returned.

"They would not offer help willingly, yet I am sure I can convince them to assist."

Ever since her awakening to undeath and having nothing but her instinct to guide her Melody was certain that she was a sure and decisive individual, yet these moments kept popping up in which all she wanted to do was turn to Sylvanas for comfort and guidance. Perhaps it was the uncertainty of undeath, or perhaps it was just that Sylvanas was such a strong and willful person. She did not like having to need someone else like this, yet she could not help but press herself closer in to Sylvanas' arms and mutter, "You'll stay with me the whole time, won't you _kyela_?"

"Yes, _mirwa_." Sylvanas said tenderly, brushing a hand over Melody's dark red hair. "I will. We'll seek them out in a few days. I'll arrange things so I can get away from Undercity for a bit. I'm sure Aleric and Varimathras can handle things for a little bit without me. For now though, I think we should hunt."

Melody looked up and a glint entered her blue gaze as they met with Sylvanas' blazing red. Hunting for the two of them meant sharing a moonlit meal of the blood they needed to sustain themselves under the open sky, which was always followed afterward with a bath in a natural spring nearby and a night of passion beneath the stars, and it had become one of Melody's favorite times which she most looked forward too. Sylvanas could not get away more than once or twice a week for it, and the idea excited her instantly, every nerve in her being catching fire as her heart spurred to life and blood rushed through her.

With another kiss, this one much more passionate than the previous one, the two undead elven women turned to Sylvanas' private rooms hidden within the Royal Quarter which housed a private exit out of Undercity that none knew save the two of them to go enjoy their hunt. Both were so caught up in the other that neither noticed the shifting shadows near the main hallway entrance to the Royal Quarter as they departed…


	6. Chapter 6 - Strength and Will

I'd like to thank everyone who has shown support so far, it really helps. I enjoy reading all of your feedback. As always, feel free to leave any sort of comments or thoughts or even corrections, as long as it's polite!

And the usual notes: I do not speak or know Thallasian or Elvish, I just look up words that suit me! See previous chapters for explanations on what they mean, though this chapter is mostly just the two pet names/endearing terms.

I do not own anything, all rights to Blizzard, I'm just a crazy fan nerd. ^.^

* * *

"Are you nervous?"

The question from the echoing voice broke through Melody's brooding thoughts as she stared up at the giant ominous floating construct high above. She would not have called it a "building" per se, as that would imply a structure with doors and windows and this thing certainly had none of those. It looked to be hewn from different colors of marble and reinforced with massive bones from creatures of which she was unsure of the origins of. It was similar to the place that Sylvanas had described to her that she had taken her too during the tale of her final days among the living, Naxxramus.

This place was different though, and it hovered over the broken ruins of a human town. The craggy and shattered stone structures were still visible in on the nearby landscape, a testament to the strife that had visited this place at the hand of the Scourge. Not far to the north west of here was the spot on the hillside where she had first awoken to the curse of undeath. Though they had flown here they had not visited the spot, though Sylvanas had offered. Melody was not interested in seeing it again at the moment. She was trying to avoid losing her wits today. The sight of the remnants of the battle blow them as they had flown by in which she had lost her life had been eerie enough for her right that moment.

Melody glanced over at the owner of the voice that had interrupted her silent musings. The Dark Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, Banshee Queen of the Forsaken and Ruler of Undercity, stood watching her as Melody had contemplated the floating necrotic citadel high above them, her gorgeous high elven features not diminished in the least by the curse of undeath she too bore, mirroring her own. The two undead elven women were of a height and similar voluptuous build, Melody with dark red hair cascading down her back held out of her face by a mithril and ruby circlet and glowing icy blue eyes, Sylvanas with pale locks just visible at the edges of the hood she always wore, her red eyes blazing from with it's depths. Sylvanas herself had bestowed that curse upon her, turning her in to a death knight after she had perished in that battle, though she was still vague on the details of how that event had unfolded. Sylvanas had admitted the fact that she had done it and that she had acquired the knowledge and ability to create death knights in secret, but had not said much more. Melody didn't hold that against her however. She had lost all memory of her life when she had awoken in undeath, and though Sylvanas claimed her memory would eventually return it had yet to do so. She had only a knot of roiling emotions and instinct to guider her, and every one of them said to follow and trust in her Queen.

"No, I'm not nervous." Melody said, her voice holding the same other worldly echo as Sylvanas' own as she turned her blue eyed gaze back up to the floating necrotic citadel above. "I just wish I had some idea of what to expect."

Sylvanas nodded slowly. "I wish I knew what I could tell you. As I've never turned another death knight before you I do not know what will happen here today. All I know is that the response to my message from High Lord Darian Mograine said to meet him here below Ebon Hold this evening and he would send someone out to meet us. Yet I promise I will stay with you, come what may."

Melody stepped closer and offered her queen and her lover a soft kiss in thanks, sticking her face into the depths of Sylvanas' hood and brushing her cool lips across Sylvanas' cold mouth. "Thank you, kyela." She breathed, the moment lingering between them for several long seconds before Melody stepped back. "Your support means everything to me, but I need you to promise me something today."

"What would that be?" Sylvanas asked, tilting her head slightly, her long thin elven ears protruding from her hood swaying curiously.

"I have a feeling that whatever happens with this, it will be very difficult, and very painful. I need to go through with it thought, whatever is to come. I need to stand tall all the way, whatever is to come, on my own."

Sylvanas' mask cracked slightly, as it was prone to do where Melody was concerned. The tall proud undead blood elf was her biggest real weak point, and she didn't like the sound of this. "How do you know?"

"I just have a feeling. A… connection, I guess I would call it." She glanced up at Ebon Hold again, then back to Sylvanas. "I can't explain it, but I can feel it."

"So I should stand aside even if they are hurting you?"

"Yes. Please, I need you to promise me. I will promise in return that I will lean on you after and let you soothe the situation however you wish, but during whatever happens, please promise me you'll let it happen."

Sylvanas was silent for a very long time. Her gut was twisting in knots at this sudden ominous idea, yet Melody's instinct since she had been turned had not led her wrong yet, and there was nothing to say that it would go badly. Finaly she stepped forward and raised a hand, tenderly burshing back a lock Melody's dark red hair.

"I promise." She said.

Melody caught up her hand and pressed her lips and cheek to Sylvanas' palm. "Thank you."

"Just remember yours in return, mirwa."

After drawing comfort from the touch for a few moments, Melody stepped back from Sylvanas once more and resumed her study of the structure above them. The death knights of Ebon Hold supposedly were most concerned with making allies in the turbulent times they were experiencing having just broken free of the Lich King's control. Many of them had not had free will since they had walked the land of the living, and Melody was uncertain what it must have been like waking to one's own mind. She imagined it must have resembled for them what the experience will be if she eventually regained her own lost memories. It must have been like waking from a dream. Or a nightmare.

To all accounts she had heard, death knights were a surly lot, contemptuous of those weaker than they which they, in their opinion, encompassed just about everyone. It must have been a trait of having been under complete mental control of the Scourge; Melody herself certainly did not view everyone around her as inferior. She had never had her will stripped of her however, and the thought of such an existence chilled her bones even more than undeath already did. Yet even all of this aside, she felt an innate kinship with those above her, even though she had yet to ever lay eyes on another death knight. Well, perhaps "kinship" was too strong a word. It implied a degree of loyalty and camaraderie she lacked, yet there was definitely some sort of connection there. Gods but this blasted tangle of knotted emotion within here was as confusing as it was helpful!

It was almost a full hour before there was any visible activity from Ebon Hold from their vantage point on the ground below, during which neither woman spoke further or even moved. The undead could hold as still as the grave, quite literally. Sylvanas stood at such an angle as to be able to keep both Melody and the Ebon Hold in the same view, and Melody stood staring up at the necrotic citadel, waiting, watching. The shadows of evening stretched and grew deeper as the sun sank ponderously down to the horizon, until finally when it was about halfway gone there was a motion on one of the outer balconies of the citadel above. Melody watched as a figure launched in to the air and arched in a wide circle around the far side of it, turning inward and dipping down as it flew in a path that took it beneath the citadel and then straight for them. The death knights had known exactly where they were. They had probably known the moment the two women had arrived.

As the shape of the figure drew closer skimming scant half dozen feet above the sparse grass and brush of the surrounding hillside it slowly resolved in to the figure of a woman on a flying beast. The creature was a skeletal bird with very little flesh left and a mounting saddle which looked like it might slide off the creature's bones any moment. It was no bigger than one of the giant bats they rode in Undercity and it's hollow eye sockets managed to look menacing even without eyes. The woman on it's was an undead blood elf woman like Melody, and while she had roughly the same athletic form she was less curvaceous than Melody was, and as she reigned the animal in before them and dismounted Melody could see she stood at least a hand shorter than herself. She had a menacing look of her own to match that of the beast, her eyes blazing red like Sylvanas' own from a face framed with sunset colored hair. Her natural elven beauty was not muted by her pale skin tone of an undead or her fierce demeanor as a death knight, but it certainly distracted from it.

The woman wasted no time as she walked up to within arm's reach of Melody. "I am Lady Alistra, and I was asked to meet you by High Lord Mograine and assess your… condition." She said to Melody, her voice ringing in the same way as the young death knight's, all but ignoring Sylvanas as though she did not exist. Sylvanas seemed irked by this, yet she kept her peace, holding to the promise she had made.

Melody nodded, "I am ready."

"Are you?" Alistra mused, tapping one of her lower lips contemplatively. "I wonder how true that is. None of us have ever before heard of a death knight created by someone not of the scourge or ourselves." Her gaze flickered from Melody's face to Sylvanas' and then back again so quickly one might have thought they'd imagined it. "What have you to say for yourself?"

Melody blinked. "Regarding what?"

"Regarding your current state."

Not knowing what to say to this, Melody shook her head. "I have nothing to say in response. I did not ask to be raised, nor am I sure I would have wanted it for myself had I been given a choice in the matter. However that does not really matter now. I am what I am, and I would be the best I can be in my current condition."

Alistra stared at her, a gaze that was both penetrating and disconcerting, yet Melody held it all the same, her head high and her shoulders back. The height difference between them did not matter in the slightest in this matching of wills, and finally Alistra nodded. "Well spoken, and I can see the sincerity in your eyes. It remains to be seen if you have any worth to you, however. Death Knights are usually judged as soon as they awaken, and had you been born in our fold you would not have missed it. I shall judge you now."

Without further explanation, Alistra whipped her flattened hand outwards, palm towards Melody. A sinuous red and orange light burst forth and slammed in to the center of Melody's chest, who gasped involuntarily and leaned forward. The light intensified and strengthened as the waving light seemed to weave through the air, feeling as though it pierced her very soul as a faint glowing orange sheen surrounded her. Every nerve in her body seemed to have caught fire all at once, and the pain was incredible. Seconds passed, or maybe days, she wasn't sure. Someone groaned nearby, or was that her? She hunched over and focused as much of her will as she could muster in to the single act of staying on her feet. Slowly, infinitesimally, she forced her body to do what she wanted. She accepted and moved passed the pain as much as she was able to. It was not completely successful, she still felt as if she had walked through a raging wall of flames, but it was enough to stand upright again, and she lifted her head and looked Alistra in the eye. Alistra, for her part, had an extremely odd look on her face, something akin to a mixture of surprise, impressed, and … "fear" was too strong a word. Maybe slightly intimidated, Melody couldn't be certain.

The beam winked out as Alistra finally dropped her hand, and she returned Melody's blue eyed gaze with her own red eyed stare. It was a long moment more before she finally spoke, a note in her echoing voice to mirror the look on her face. "I have delved dozens of initiates this way, and witness countless others. All death knights are delved upon waking. Some die instantly from the sheer pain of it, others curl up and howl. It is not just a matter of the pain. It lets us gauge the strength of one's essence, of your very soul, to measure how strong you are inside as well as out. Only the ones who show any sort of strength during the delving process are allowed to become a true death knight, by remaining on their knees, or by spitting defiance even if the pain is too much to stay upright."

"Some of you die from this?!" Sylvanas sounded angry, and Alistra finally acknowledged the Banshee Queen's presence by turning to her.

"Yes. It is unfortunate, yet necessary. I don't know how you did this, Dark Lady, but the only person I have ever seen remain on their feet and even straighten themselves fully under a delving was High Lord Mograine himself. Even I went down to one knee."

Sylvanas narrowed her eyes, a stern expression which Lady Alistra did not shy from. "I did indicate in my message that she was stronger than most."

Alistra nodded, "You did indeed. Strength is certainly important among our kind, yet that is not everything. Yet I will not lie; this boasts very well for you." She turned her gaze back to Melody. "High Lord Mograine had given me instructions that if you were not up to our exacting standards or were some sort of bastardization of a true death knight that I was to terminate you."

"What?!" Sylvanas' echoing shout bounced off the hillside, her mask actually cracking so far as to cause her hand to twitch towards he bow involuntarily. Melody really was a great weakness for her, and she did not like the thought that they had been played.

Alistra seemed to pick up on this however and shook her head. "Do not misunderstand, it was not malice, it is simply our way, Banshee Queen. The weak are culled so the strong may thrive. The delving shows much more than just potential strength, however, and I find myself… eager… to bring you above to the High Lord." Her red eyes gleamed in anticipation, and this declaration seemed to sooth Sylvanas' edge as well. At least a little bit, at any rate. "I will await you on the flight deck of Ebon Hold." Alistra said, and without further preamble she turned and walked back to the skeletal bird and lifted herself easily and gracefully once more into it's saddle, and with a twitch of the reigns lifted in to the air and began her ascent up to the necrotic citadel.

Melody moved to Sylvanas' side quickly, yet no quicker than Sylvanas stepped towards her. Sylvanas spoke first, even as melody raised a hand to the bluish cheek within her hood. "I knew this would be difficult and perhaps dangerous, yet I had no idea that I was endangering your life by bringing you here. It was a mistake, and I regret it."

Melody shook her head vehemently. "No, kyela, it was the right thing to do. Only here can I learn what I need to know to grow as a death knight. We must go on. I must go on." Melody brushed the cheek affectionately, yet her face was stern and her jaw was set in a determined way. Sylvanas was struck again by the sheer strength of will of this woman, and suddenly she found that pride warred with fear for her lover within her mostly still heart. She struggled to let none of it show on her face, however, and returned the affectionate gesture. "I won't leave here without you."

For her part, Melody could see right through the façade now. It had taken time to begin to see the signs, yet she was adept at picking them out of her queen's demeanor now. An ever so slight eye narrowing, a tiny shift in the set of her shoulders. It was plain as day to her now, though she doubted anyone else thought these signs anything other than her normal stern countenance.

"I would not have it any other way. Just please remember your promise."

Sylvanas blinked. "You think there is more to come."

"Oh yes." Melody said, certain. "We have just begun…"

* * *

How long had it been? An hour? Two? Half a day? She had no idea how long she'd been sequestered in the underbelly of Ebon Hold. All sense of time had been lost to Melody at the ceaseless onslaught of tests the death knights had been throwing at her. It basically boiled down one duel after another, each time with a stronger opponent than the last, yet with no time to rest in between while each new opponent was fresh and ready for a fight. She was not allowed to stop for any reason, and despite having a much reduced circulatory system, she was winded and coated in sweat from head to toe. Death knights did not duel for sport, they dueled to benefit from the fight, which meant that even while their weapons were blunted for practice, they did not pull punches. Indeed, they leaned in to them to inflict as much real combat simulated damage as possible. That was a part of the test as well; a medic was on standby to aid the worst wounds should they arise, yet her various bruises and twists to her muscles and other blows she had taken were not tended. She was bleeding freely from several cuts on her head, face, shoulders, arms and any other exposed skin, and she had a nasty yellowing bruise spreading over her left eye. Had she been alive, it would have been brown and purple by now.

Sylvanas had kept to her word, but it was a near thing judging by the Dark Lady's face the few times Melody had caught her eye by chance between duels. The Banshee Queen had far better control over herself than to fly off the handle, but her anger and dislike of the situation was very plain to Melody. She wondered if the High Lord Mograine could feel the daggers of Sylvanas' eyes every time she glanced at him.

The High Lord himself stood on the edge of the raised outer ring which overlooked the slight pit in the floor which she was standing in, watching as Koltira Deathweaver's unconscious form was hauled out of the pit by two other death knights to be deposited beside Thassarian at the end of the line of those she had bested. He was tall for a human, she thought, yet his face and most of his body features were hidden in the classic death knight tusked black and blue helmet and matching spiked armor many of them wore. She wished she could have read something in his face, yet his countenance was all she had to go on at this time, and that did not tell her much beyond what she could see in every other aspect of how he watched the proceedings.

Melody had no idea what the death knights needed a pit like this for, yet it was certainly serving it's purpose now. Her fresh blood had spattered the floor along with that of her various opponents to mix with what looked like old dried blood which came, presumably, from situations similar to the one she was now in. Mograine's face was mostly unreadable, though it did alternate a bit from a slight distasteful twist to the corner of his mouth when he looked at the growing line of unconscious death knights to what seemed to be an appraising eye even through his helmet when turned towards her. He had made no reaction when the delving had been repeated on her for him to see her not fall, despite a general murmur of surprise and approval from the other death knights around them. He had only ordered the duels to begin.

After a long considering look, Mograine stood, and the already hushed room fell completely silent, not even the sound of breathing broke the air. No one in this room needed much breath anyway. Mograine spoke in a deep rumbling echo.

"By all accounts, you are bare weeks old, and yet you best some of my strongest death knights." He said. It was neither a positive word or a negative reprisal, merely fact. "I do not know exactly how your turning was done, yet it seems there is much more to it than I had originally thought. I've no more tests to give you; unless you feel like testing yourself against me?"

Sylvanas looked for a mere heartbeat as though she was going to break her promise of holding herself in check at last, yet she managed even as Melody straightened her back and squared her shoulders, trying hard not to wince with the pain of flexing her aching body. "If that is what is necessary, so be it."

High Lord Darian Mograine's laugh was a thunderous and booming as the other worldly echo in his voice was. "No, it is not necessary, but that was a good answer to that question. Ever death knight is always prepared to do what is necessary to achieve our goals. You've all the qualities of our best knights in you; strength, willpower, potential, and cleverness. I am satisfied with you, though I should like to eventually find out how you were created." He cast a brief sidelong look at Sylvanas, who kept her peace, before he turned back. "I name you a true death knight, worthy of Ebon Hold, and though I suppose your other loyalties will probably keep you away for the most part, you will always find welcome here. I will have our teachers show you what you must know to flourish in your art over the next fortnight."

Sylvanas blinked, her red eyes flickering in her hood. "Fortnight?"

Mograine turned toward her. "Yes, fortnight. The minimum amount of time it would take to show her everything she needs to know. I doubt that she will master our abilities in that time, so she will have to practice and learn further as she goes. You didn't think I could show her what was needed in the space of an afternoon, did you?" There was no hint of contempt or a snide tone in his voice, yet Sylvanas' lips curled in response anyway.

"We will camp in the ruins below," Sylvanas told him. "I will need to return to Undercity periodically to keep my affairs in hand."

Mograine nodded. "As you wish. Melody is in no danger here. We are all brothers and sisters in death."

Sylvanas' face blanked and she regarded him levelly, then finally nodded her acceptance. "Very well." She dropped in to the pit and put an arm around Melody's waist to help her up, and though Melody tried hard not to lean on Sylvanas, she found she needed the assistance after all, now that the fight was over and her heart was slowing. They were escorted back to the flight deck by several death knight with Mograine himself leading them, and as Sylvanas helped Melody to settle on to the giant bat they had brought, Melody paused and turned to Mograine.

"The abilities of the death knights…" She said.

Mograine nodded. "Yes?"

"None of the death knights I fought used any of them that I could see."

Mograine chuckled, a sound like a rumbling thunder cloud. "How very perceptive you are. Has anyone ever told you that you don't seem to miss very much?"

Sylvanas nodded before Melody could answer. "A number of people. She doesn't listen."

The mirth in Mograine's voice remained as he explained, "Believe it or not, we were not here simply to beat you. Had we wanted you dead, Alistra would have done the deed upon your delving. No, she found you to be worthy of further testing, and after that we were simply interested in what you were made of, what was in your heart and your soul. You have not trained in our abilities yet, so none were used against you, else they'd have had an unfair advantage."

"Then they held back." Melody said, disgusted as she leaned on the bat more than she'd have been prepared to admit. Her own echo became slightly heated. "Fair or not, if they held back it wasn't a true test."

Mograine chuckled again. "You continue to surprise. Your fire is impressive, I will grant you that. Make no mistake, they did not hold back. As I said, we were interested in your strength, which you displayed in ample amount. They tried their best with their blades, and you bear no shame."

"But I—" She began.  
"Enough." Mograine commanded. "Accept it as how we do things and move on. There will be plenty of time to prove yourself further later on."

Melody allowed Sylvanas to seat them firmly upon the giant bat and guide the creature towards take off, and as the creature flapped it's wings and lifted them in to the air, Melody called back, "Fine, but once I've learned what I need to know, I'll want a rematch!" As the bat lifted in to the air to glide towards the hill below, Melody thought she could hear the rumble of his laughter once more.

Sylvanas guided the giant bat down to the broken buildings below and landed beside a farm house surrounded by ground that still held a vague shape of having been tilled at some point in recent past. The farmhouse looked mostly intact for a wonder, though there was a giant gaping hole where the front room window used to be and a few missing sections of shingles on the roof. She gently helped Melody down and tethered the bat to what remained of the mailbox, removed a travel pack from the animal's saddle, then they went inside and looked around. The wreckage inside was much worse than the minor damage outside suggested, and various bits of debris that resembled what once might have been the possessions of a farming family were strewn everywhere. A narrow staircase led them to the upper loft and an adjoining bedroom which were, in contrast to the ground floor, mostly untouched. Sylvanas helped Melody to lay down on the bed, then turned to the mantle and withdrew a flint and steel from the pack which she had brought in. She would have taken a few candles from the pack as well, yet surprisingly there stood a few on the mantle that were only half burned, and she lit those instead.

"This bed is lumpy and uncomfortable." Melody murmured, more to herself than anything, yet Sylvanas chuckled. "What's funny?" She mumbled. Her physical exhaustion from the fights was deeper than she had thought. Or perhaps this was some odd aspect of being tired out as an undead? She wasn't sure, but she remembered Sylvanas mentioning something about it at some point.

"You're funny." Sylvanas said as she dropped the travel pack on the cracked night stand which stood against one wall, her cold mask falling away as it did when they were in private. She withdrew a small vial of something then turned around. "You and your being overly particular about beds and your sleeping conditions."

Melody shook her head, "I don't remember… but it's still lumpy."

"I've never enjoyed human architecture at all, myself." Sylvanas said, "But a mattress is a mattress." She said, and laid down beside Melody, then blinked at her lover. "… it is lumpy."

"Told you." Melody said, then extended her legs obediently as Sylvanas sat up and begin working on removing her boots for her, dropping them to the bare wooden floor with a thunk. Her gauntlets followed, and her paulders, and Sylvanas dropped her own of each beside Melody's as well. Then Sylvanas produced the small vial she had retrieved and uncorked it. The smell of lilac filled the air almost instantly, and Melody blinked.

"What is that?" Melody asked.

"It's a salve, to treat your wounds." Sylvanas replied. "It's usually used for much more serious injury, as it has magical properties blended from a dryad." Sylvanas smirked. "I took it from a Night Elf once. It will help you feel better, mirwa."

Melody shook her head. "Sounds rare and potent. It shouldn't be wasted on my slight injuries."

Sylvanas arched an eyebrow, her long thin elven ears laying flat. "Slight? You can barely stand. Don't worry about it, just let me tend you." The tone in her echo was a combination of concern and commanding queen, so Melody nodded and just relaxed flat on her back as Sylvanas slowly and methodically dabbed the ointment around her injuries. It was actually very soothing, and Melody found herself extremely relaxed in mere moments. She could feel the ointment working as if it were drawing the aches and pains out of her skin like steam through a vent, evaporating as if it had never been. When Sylvanas was finished and re-corked the vial, all but the most serious pains such as the bruise on her face had gone, and even those had lessened considerably.

"Mmm… that felt so nice… thank you kyela."

"You're most welcome. Rest now, I'll be here with you."

Melody sank her body down in to the hard lumpy uncomfortable excuse for a mattress and turned her head inwards to pillow against Sylvanas' breast, who put an arm around Melody in return and they lay there together, silent for some time, before Melody finally spoke again.

"You can't stay away from Undercity for a full fortnight."

Sylvanas grimaced distastefully. "No, I can't."

"You should go back while I train."

Sylvanas blinked, looking down in to Melody's glowing blue eyes. "What's this concern for the city out of nowhere?"

"I…" Melody paused, but wasn't sure how else to say what she wanted to say. "I don't think… your absence would be beneficial for you right now. I mean, I think there's something going on."

"What do you think is going on?" Sylvanas asked. Her tone was intense now, but not accusatory. She honesty wanted to hear what Melody had to say. Her insight had proven valuable since she'd awoken to undeath so far.

"I don't trust Varimathras." Melody said softly.

"Varimathras?" Sylvanas echoed ponderously. "Why? He's served me for quite some time."

"I know, but…" Melody shook her head. "I don't know what made me feel this way. I'm not trying to make any particular accusations, I just feel like there's something going on. I think he means to do you some sort of harm, and I think the more you are gone from Undercity the more he has reign to engineer whatever plot I feel he is scheming against you."

Sylvanas turned this over in her mind for several long minutes before finally nodding. "I'm not convinced there is anything to worry about, but I trust your judgment. I have kept him on a tight leash ever since we became… associated. I will investigate when I return to Undercity." Melody let out a small sigh of relief before Sylvanas continued. "But I will not leave you completely alone. I will return at night to be with you. I couldn't do much here during your training anyway, but your evenings will still be with me."

Melody nodded obediently this time, accepting the concession, but still she worried for her queen. She didn't know much about the demon first hand, but she wanted to be there to help protect her queen. What would she do if something happened to Sylvanas while she was here training? No, she musn't think of that. She would focus on being trained, then use her now abilities to aid her queen against whatever this demon was plotting.

Sylvanas nodded approvingly. "Good. Rest now. We will discuss matters more tomorrow." And Melody sank in to a deep dreamless sleep against Sylvanas' breast.

* * *

Ebon Hold had three main trainers within it who specialized in the three primary sources of power which fueled a death knight's strength; frost, blood, and unholy. Melody worked with all three of them over the next couple of weeks developing her affinity for these powers and learning to harness them. It was intense and grueling work, yet she set herself to the task with vigilance and it came easier and easier to her in the relatively short period of time she had, especially the powers of frost and of blood. The icy spreading on her shoulders in the incident in the upper courtyard of the ruins above Undercity now made sense; it was her presence as a death knight manifesting itself subconsciously, so her teachers explained to her. They guided her as her powers developed, and she found they strengthened her in ways she had never thought possible. She lost herself in her training at times, the power coming to her so naturally it sometimes surprised even her teachers. They were not certain what was allowing her to channel her abilities so easily, and Melody suspected it had to do with the mystery surrounding the methods Sylvanas had used in turning her, yet she did not mention this to her teachers.

Once she had progressed far enough that she was considered on a level with most death knights in her powers, High Lord Mograine, who had been checking up on her progress, granted her the request she had made of him the first night she had been there and gave her the opportunity of a rematch on equal footing with the other death knights. She fought only Koltira Deathweaver and Thassarian over again, aiming high as she didn't feel it necessary to fight the weakest of them over again, though she did not voice this out loud. The fights with each of them were just as intense as before with all their abilities at their disposal added in, and with nothing held back Melody still claimed victory in each duel, and though the individual fights lasted far longer this time than last time for each man, she did not take as much hurt from them having now learned what she needed to know to get by in combat as a death knight.

Her nights were filled with Sylvanas, who did indeed return to her every night as she had promised. They spent the evenings that she was not too worn out from her training passionately entwined, making love in their requisitioned hovel or out beneath the stars after a hunt, and the nights which she was too exhausted they simply lay and rested together, allowing their closeness to fuel their desire to be with each other and enjoying the others' presence. Sylvanas even brought a set of the silken blankets and pillows from Undercity to pad the lumpy old mattress for her, which pleased Melody immensely.

The final night of her training arrived Sylvanas was present for a death knight only even as Melody was given her set of dark blue and black death knight armor and granted her runeblade, which she forged in a ceremony with the highest of Ebon Hold's death knights watching in approval. The large two handed sword looked like it fit well on her back, and Sylvanas was quietly impressed with the image Melody cut in her plating.

"You are truly our sister in death, Melody Duskrunner!" Mograine declaimed, and there was a cheer to all assembled. They were escorted to the flight deck and given all honors as they departed back to Undercity.

As they flew they discussed the matter of her new armor. She could not wear it in public in Undercity, as it was too likely someone would catch on if they connected it to the death knights. She would stick to the dark grey and black plates that declared her one of the Dark Rangers instead. Yet she would keep her ties to Ebon Hold. It had become an important part of her, and she would treasure it.

They landed just outside of Undercity and let the giant bat fly back in on it's own, then channeled through Sylvanas' specially attuned hearth stone to get in to the city without being seen, then Sylvanas walked her through her chambers to the Royal Quarter.

"I just need to check on one thing before we retire to your bed together, mirwa." Sylvanas said, and Melody nodded. Stepped up on the dais once they were in the Royal Quarter and found Aleric Hawkin waiting for them. Yet as they entered, Melody wrinkled her nose. Something smelled... off. Except it wasn't an olfactory response, she was sure of that. Yet there was an acrid burning sort of feel to the air that her mind was interpreting as a scent despite the fact that her nose reported nothing different. It was extremely confusing and she had no idea what to make of it.

"You have returned." Aleric rasped, and Sylvanas nodded.

"What have you to report?"

"I'm afraid you will not like what I have to say this night, Sylvanas."

The tone in the Forsaken man's voice was so cold it instantly raised Melody's hackles, and Sylvanas froze. Both undead elven womens' ears lay back nearly flat against their heads.

"What did you-"

Aleric cut her off. "I'm afraid I have misled you in to believing I am your man, when in fact I serve a different master. A master who has been most interested to learn of certain… recent developments… of yours…" The stare he aimed at Melody was so direct he may has well have shouted that it was her he had reported about.

Sylvanas' echo came out with such a dangerous tone it could have melted stone. "I don't know why you have betrayed me Aleric, but it will be your final mistake. If you have let even a hint slip about Melody after I trusted you-"

The Forsaken laughed a raspy chortle, "Oh I've let slip more than a hint, and if you have any brains at all you'll listen to me and do as I say, or this secret will be used to undo you."

"So it has not been told to the general public?" Sylvanas asked quietly.

"No, not yet, and if you wish it to remain so yo-" His last word cut off in a gurgle as an arrow bloomed in his throat. It was a broad head shaft and from such a close range nearly severed his head completely. Melody's eyes had barely even followed when Sylvanas pulled her bow.

"How are we going to find his master to silence him?" Melody asked, instantly siding with Sylvanas' point of view rather than contradict her judgment to kill their only source of information.

"He'll probably have something on him to tell us." Sylvanas said as she bent down to begin rooting through his clothing to find some clue, then blinked in surprised. "This isn't Aleric."

"It's not?"

"No, it's not. It's an enchanted disguise. Which begs the question, where is the real Aleric Hawkins, and how long has he been replaced without my knowledge?" Her mouth twisted in disgust at the thought of the deception, and neither had an answer.

Melody knelt beside her queen and the burning acrid scent grew worse, and she realized now the source of it. "It's coming from him..."

Sylvanas looked at her. "What is?"

"I smelled like a... a burning acidic scent, only not a smell, when we came in. I didn't know what it was, but this close I can tell it's from him."

Sylvanas' anger actually cracked in to surprise for a moment, and she withdrew a small pinch of a fine blue-ish purple powder which she withdrew from a belt pouch and dusted lightly over the corpse. It shimmered in the air and resolved in to a demon. Sylvanas sneered at it, then looked surprised at Melody. "An enchantment to disguise a being's essence. You could detect it through it's disguise?"

"I guess." Melody said, "I didn't really know what it meant or what I was feeling."

"This could be a powerful aid..." Sylvanas mused, then called the guards to remove the demon. "I suppose now we have a demon to hunt."


End file.
